Not what they seem
by Federichina
Summary: When Hermione discovers her true heritage she's in for the shock of her life! A death eater father! A brother! a totally new appearance! being resorted! Heaps of suitors hoping to marry her! Things go from bad to worse for Hermione especially when she starts falling in love with as certain Slytherin Playboy... Please Read& REVIEW! Chapter 11 coming SOON !
1. Chapter 1

**ORIGINAL AN (02.28.2014): So this is my very first HP fanfic, hope it's not too bad. I have a lot more coming because I feel really inspired! Please! Please! review it would help me immensely! I really don't mean to be annoying but reviews are my ONLY way of knowing how good my story is so it would be nice of you to do so!**

***SPOILER ALERT* This is the first fic I've ever seen where Dolohov is Mione's father but I thought it would be interesting to actually change it up a bit, it's always Blaise Zabini is Mione's long lost twin or something like that... Tell me what you thing about it in your review or PM me if you'd rather do that!**

**Disclaimer: Obviously I'm not JK Rowling so I don't own anything you recognize, this goes for the whole story!**

**Edited Author's note (05/11/2016): HII! This fanfic is undergoing a top to bottom editting, not when it comes to major plot points but definitely when it come's to language...I'm trying to edit everything speedily to get new chapters going. Hope you enjoy it :* **

Kat

Stuffed animals were strewn across the pink bed sheets, the late afternoon light poured through the window forcing the girl to throw an arm over her face in order to block out the sunlight. Alone in her room, Hermione Granger was staring at the ceiling, her eyes stung from all the crying she had been doing. It had only been a day since she had said her tearful goodbyes to Harry and Ron on platform nine and three quarters. She was alone at home now, stuck with her own thoughts. "I can't believe Dumbledore is dead" she whispered to herself. The old man's existence seemed so deeply rooted in the wizarding world that Hermione could not fathom life at Hogwarts without him. Tears were rolling down her cheeks and forming small, salty puddles on either side of her head. She imagined the headmaster's office without its numerous, seemingly useless trinkets and its overflowing bowl of lemon drops. She was too soft, she knew it. Death still shocked her. contrarily to Harry. Harry that got destructively angry but whose resolve never faltered. He was never truly scared, she surmised that it came from the fact that since his birth violence and tragedy clung to him- like hair on sweaty skin. Absently, her hand went down to rub at the large scar on her stomach. War was brewing and she needed to be stronger.

Antonin

"Antonin..." the cold eerie voice of the Dark lord sent shivers down Dolohov's spine as he entered the ostentatious dining room of Malfoy Manor. "You called for me my lord?" the Death eater could barely suppress the fear in his voice as he mentally made the lists of all the mistakes he might be punished for. Antonin Dolohov was one of the Dark Lord's most faithful but no Death Eater was ever completely safe from their master's wrath. To his surprise he heard a chuckle "You are not here to be punished Antonin, I called upon you to discuss a topic that may please you...". Relief flooded over the Death Eater as he kneeled in front of his lord.

"May I as what you wish to talk about my lord?". Tom Marvolo Riddle turned his snake-like face towards his faithful servant. Even after all this time, Antonin could not help but flinch when his gaze met with the crimson, slit like eyes of his master. Back at Hogwarts, in 1944, he had been handsome, charismatic, unbelievably powerful which made younger Slytherins such as Antonin flock to him despite his cruelty. Now, none of that fascinating boy remained, except for the raw power and vacillating mental health "It's time you retrieve your daughter Antonin".

Antonin did not believe the words he was hearing, did not allow himself to believe them. He knew that his lord enjoyed playing sick games on even his most faithful followers. Antonin never expected to see his daughter again, she had been ripped away from his arms the day he had been taken to Azkaban. When imprisoned there, her round face and brown curls haunted him almost as much as his wife's lifeless body resting on bloody sheets. Shaking away the painful memories, Antonin raised head, attempting to read his lord's expression

-"But my lord, the ministry concealed her appearance after I was sent to Azkaban,for all I know Kateryna might be dead, or worse, raised as a filthy Muggle!"

-"Are you questioning me Antonin?"

Antonin knew better than to ever question Lord Voldemort and promptly backtracked. Questions were threatening to tumble from his lips. He wisely kept them to himself, knowing that he was only one wrong word away from a cruciatus.

"Never my lord I was merely surprised at the good news. My lord is truly benevolent in allowing me to bring Kateryna home." Dolohov hastily replied not willing to suffer the wrath of Lord Voldemort.

"I have to warn you Antonin, I cannot, will not have my Death Eaters go soft. I expect your daughter's return to have no effect on your performance or their shall be dire consequences..."

Antonin understood his meaning perfectly, his daughter was fully expandable to his Lord and her existence could be over before he even met her with a flashing green light.

"Of course my Lord, I understand my lord"

Antonin didn't dare to say anything else. Conversations with the dark lord were always sparse. Nobody dared breathe a single more word than necessary lest they find themselves hit with a particularly excruciating cruciatus.

"You may go retrieve your daughter today, take Yaxley and Rowle with you. I expect her to put up quite a fight".

Antonin furrowed his brow, why would his daughter have any reason to put up a fight? He surmised that the ministry would have placed her in a Muggle family, she most probably had never received an Hogwarts letter. He furrowed his brow for a second, Muggles were known to steal magic, there was a chance that Kateryna's power had been stolen away by some filthy mudblood. He shuddered at the thought. Merlin help him, if she was a Squib he would have to get rid of the abomination!

"Where will I find her my lord?"

A twisted smile stretched Lord Voldemort's chalky cheeks

Kat

"Sweetheart we're going out for the day! Are you okay with staying home?"

Rose Granger asked while peeking her head in her daughter's room

"Sure mom" Hermione mumbled her bushy hair barely visible from beyond the pile of parchments and book strawn across her bed.

"What are you doing sweetheart?' Rose asked, she understood her daughter's love for knowledge but was always surprised to see her captivated by a book even during her first week of summer holiday. Rose Granger had always been a social creature, as a young girls she would go out for drinks with her friends and run around time with questionable boys. Hermione was nothing like her mother, she enjoyed staying home and evolved in a world that Rose couldn't fully understand.

"Oh it's fascinating really, I'm researching Goblin made weapons did you know that they are able to assimilate any substance poured onto them such as Basilisk's weapon, like when Harry..." Hermione abruptly stopped her sentence, noticing her mother's confused face. Rose smiled softly at her daughter, kissing her brow she sighed " I'm so sorry sweetheart but sometimes I can't understand a word you're saying..."

As her mother walked out of the room with a last wave of her hand, Hermione felt a terrible sense of guilt overwhelm her, it wasn't fair of her to expect her family to understand everything about the wizarding world.

"Mom?"

She called out as Rose went to close the door behind, aware of Hermione's love for peace and quiet.

"Yes sweetheart?"

Rose answered pausing with a hand on the doorknob

"I love you"

A smile warmed Rose face "I love you too baby"

A few minutes later, Hermione heard her parent's car make its way out of the driveway, the familiar sound of gravel under the wheels making her smile. After a year surrounded by magic and war, she was home.

It had been hours since Hermione's parents left when she heard a crashing noise coming from downstairs. Don't be so paranoid Mione, it's probably just Crooks looking for food she thought as she resumed her studying. But only a couple of seconds later, her paranoia was once again fuelled by the sound of footsteps. Putting her quill down she tiptoed to the door and out into the darkened hallway. Carefully she made her way across the floor, paying special attention to avoiding the floorboard that creaked. Silent as a shadow the terrified young witch made her way down the stairs. As she was about to reach the bottom of the staircase one of the steps creaked loudly giving away her presence to the intruders in the room next door. Everything happened very fast. She heard shouting as she tried to make it to the door cursing silently as she realized she had left her wand in her room. Stupid! Stupid Hermione forgetting something the one time you actually need it! she thought as she made a desperate dash to the front door. A second later two strong arms were gripping her, immobilizing her from behind.

"Are you sure that's her?"

Her captor answered with a noncommittal grunt. A thousands thoughts were coursing through her head, she didn't want to die. She thought of Harry and Ron, they would have to go through the coming war alone. She shut her eyes readying herself for the flashing green light of the killing curse.

"It wouldn't hurt to check, just remove the bloody concealment charm!"

Revelio the voice whispered. Hermione barely had the time to furrow her brows in confusion before she felt her body melt and reform, her eyes burn and her scalp prickle as her body. The sensation wasn't unpleasant per se but Hermione surmised that pain would be imminent, there would be no other reason for Death Eaters breaking into her house.

"She looks just like Romilda..." the voice whispered.

\- "Just get on with it" Hermione let out in a hoarse whisper. Trying her best to conceal her shaky tone and ignore the deafening pounding of her heart in her chest "If it's information that you want you'll get nothing out of me"

-"My little Kat..." the voice whispered again, it sounded strangely broken. She felt the grip on her tighten. Hermione was furious, first of all these men, probably Death Eaters, broke into her house and now one of them was muttering nonsense to her. If this was meant to be some highly sophisticated torture technique the Dark Lord was really getting sloppy...Unfortunately, this thought did not abate her fear in the slightest as her attackers kept on muttering nonsense to each other. Feeling the grip on her waist loosen ever so slightly she saw her opportunity to strike. Throwing her elbow back blindly she made a run for the door, only a few steps away. But her fast strides did not get her there fast enough as she felt a hand wrap around her wrist and lock both of her arms behind her back.

"Let go of me you Death Eater scums!" Hermione screamed and thrashed, she knew it was the end. She was probably going to die without even getting to say goodbye to her best friends, and her parents...She imagined them coming home and not understanding the meaning of the Dark Mark over their house. She prayed that no harm would come to them as she readied herself for her imminent demise. To her surprise neither Death Eater reacted to her outburst, instead the biggest of the three that had remained silent until that point said:

"We have what we came for Dolohov, let's go back to the Manor. I don't want to spend anymore time in the house of some filthy muggles!"

Dolohov, Hermione shuddered at the name. He was the one that had inflicted the unfading scar at the battle of the Department of Mysteries. Lost in her racing thoughts she barely felt the familiar squeeze of apparition and in an instant she was elsewhere.

With a pop the group appeared in the main hall of what the death eaters referred to as "The" Manor. Tears welled up in Hermione's eyes as she tried to figure out what was to happen of her. She expected to be dragged straight into a dark dungeon but the psychotic Death Eater that kept on calling her Kat dragged her from room to room finally arriving in front of a large mahogany door. Hermione started panicking, that was it, they were going to kill her or torture her. Who knew what would happen to her behind the closed wooden panel ? Would she be asked to give away information or finished off fast? Would she stay imprisoned in this place for months? Hermine sincerely hoped that if they killed her it would be with a quick Avada Kedavra to the chest. Please, Please make it fast she hoped while she tried to contain her sobs.

Antonin

Antonin Dolohov was fuming as he dragged his daughter across the halfway of Malfoy manor. To think that his precious heir had been living in the muggle world for years bothered him greately but it had been expected. What truly made him fuming was the fact that she had been disguised as mudblood Granger for. "I cursed her" he recalled bitterly "I almost killed my only daughter". The girl was sobbing uncontrollably and he had no idea how to react, he wasn't exactly the caring type and had no idea how to deal with crying women. He wished Romilda was still there. Their union had been an arranged marriage which was customary in pureblood society, but she was soft and caring. She would have found the right words. How would he explained to a girl that lived for her all life as a pathetic mudblood that she was the heir to one of the purest families in the country. He vividly remembered how courageous she had been when fighting at the Department of Mysteries. Of course, at the time her resilience had only made him want to kill her. If only he could get her to cooperate she would be a great asset to the cause. But Antonin Dolohov was no fool, he knew that his daughter would be wholly unwilling to cooperate. She probably hates me, how do I get her to cooperate? I can't have her running around defying the Dark Lord anymore. Antonin had no idea how to go about the situation, he knew he was not a gentle man and his daughter would need a soft hand to nudge her onto the right path. "I'll get Bella to talk to her afterwards, keep an eye on her! They're women they probably have a lot in common, at least she'll have someone to teach her proper pureblood manner. I'm sure Bella will enjoy it. She'll never admit it but I know she's always wanted a child." Of course, Antonin was completely disregarding that Kat would have little in common with the bloodthirsty and Dark Lord obsessed Bellatrix. Oblivious to the flaws in his reasoning, Dolohov guided his daughter towards the small living room in the east wing of the manor, hoping to explain the situation to Kateryna as concisely as possible. "Let's get this over with" he thought as he pushed the door open and ushered his daughter through.

Kat

"Sit" the unknown death eater said as they entered a surprisingly cozy living room. "What the hell is happening?" Hermione wondered as she hesitantly sat down on a plush armchair. Much to her astonishment, the death eater started removing his mask. When it was off, Hermione couldn't stifle a shriek.

"You...you...you're Do-Do-Dolohov" she spluttered. In retrospect she should not have been surprised by his identity. He had sounded like the leader during her capture.

Dolohov quirked an eyebrow and amusement flickered in his dark eyes. He had hear that Hermione Granger was an unbelievable sharp girl and was quite entertained by her astonishment.

"Indeed"

"You almost killed me! You monster! You...you...I almost died! The department of mystery you were there...the purple curse! It was you, my scar..." Hermione was terrified now, she knew that shouting jumbled nonsense at a deatheater was the fastest way to get crucioed to the brink of insanity but she had no intention to sit idly in front of her almost-murderer! Dolohov suddenly furrowed his brow as if reminded of an annoying detail. He waved his hand dismissively at Hermione's statement, trying to ignore that disturbing fact.

"That is not the point of this conversation Kateryna"

Anger bubbled up in Hermione's chest as the death eater called her Kateryna once again. All rationality was thrown out the window as Hermione figured that if she was going to die she might as well give the man a sizeable piece of her mind.

"Listen here you Death Eater piece of shit! I don't know who Kateryna is but I am sick of your little mind games so if you brought me here to kill me get on with it !"

"Enough!" Dolohov's voice boomed "In the future I advise you to address me in a more respectful tone young lady, or you will regret it" the second part of the sentence was said softly yet it managed to terrorize Hermione more than any of the danger that she had experienced with her best friends. She desperately wanted to make a run for it but knew that without a wand she wouldn't even get to the door.

-"Kateryna stop staring at that door, there is no way you can escape now. I want you to listen to me"

-"My name's not..." she interjected

Dolohov must have had enough of her very vocal protest for her grabbed her wrist sharply and looked her square in the eyes. His voice barely more than a hiss.

"Do not interrupt me when I'm speaking, you insolent girl! Did these muggles not teach you manners?"

Hermione didn't know what to say anymore, she wondered what her parents would think when they'd realize their daughter had disappeared. Tears stung the back of her eyes but she would not let them stream down her face. She would not let him see how terrified she truly was.

"Now you will stop protesting and listen to me, Understood?"

Hermione slowly nodded knowing she had absolutely no choice in the matter. She figured that even if her death was imminent, letting the death eater speak may allow her some respite. Maybe even giver her the time to formulate a plan of escape.

"Good, now, where to start..."

"don't ask me " Hermione thought "this once I have absolutely no idea what's going on..."

"Ah yes! 16 years ago ,on october 31 1979, my wife Romilda Rosier gave birth to a child,a little girl. We named her Kateryna Cassiopeia Dolohov however Romilda died only a few hours after giving birth to our baby".

She tried to stop herself from rolling her eyes, now was not the time to get a rundown of Antonin Dolohov's life story.

"And how does that have anything to do with me?"

Dolohov smirked "I thought you were the smartest witch of your age"

Hermione was starting to piece everything together but she could not, she would not believe that what she imagined was true...

"You were that baby, you are Kateryna. My little girl."

"No. No. No! This is not happening..." she whispered and then louder "That's not possible. I look just like my mom. I saw my birth certificate, my grandmother was there when I was born!"

Dolohov quirked an eyebrow

"Are you so sure about that?' he asked, an unreadable expression on his face. Waving his wand he made a full length mirror appear. Hermione did not dare to look but a sharp tug on her chin made her face turn to face her reflection. She was looking into pitch black eyes. They were not hers.

Hermione couldn't prevent her sharp intake of breath as she stared at the reflection, her reflection. She had never considered herself pretty, even when Cormac McLaggen -the self declared Gryffindor playboy- made a move on her. The girl looking back at her was unquestionably lovely, although Hermione tried to rationalize the situation by telling herself that this newfound beauty came from not being used to this new face. After a second look, she realized that the changes were not as aggressive as she first thought. Some of her features were still there, although majorly overshadowed by some of the striking changes to her bone structure.

She was petite, smaller than Hermione no more than 5''3. This new found short stature somewhat explained her difficulty in reaching the door to her house fast enough to escape. The girl had a generally tiny frame with a swan like neck, small hands and feet. Her waist seemed impossibly thin, gently curving into womanly hips that Hermione never had. Her breast were small, smaller than Hermione's ones had been albeit rounded and sitting higher on her chest. Her legs seemed impossibly long for her almost childlike stature. But the most striking changes to her features were on her face. Pitch black eyes were looking back at her, huge, heavy lidded and long lashed, striking on her olive skin. Her eyes were disturbingly reminiscent of someone she knew, although she could not put her finger on it. The changes to the rest of her face were subtler, most of her features seemed sharped, more pronounced. Her cheekbones seemed higher, her lips fuller and her brows sharper. Her hair seemed unrecognizable, slightly darker and glossier but most importantly much longer, her once tight curls hung in soft waves down her back. She flashed her reflection a small smile, uncovering a flash of white, perfectly straight, impossibly small was something unsettling about the girl's face it didn't seem natural and reminded Hermione of someone...

Dolohov, her father walked towards her, distracting her from her own reflexion. She wanted to break down, cry, maybe smash the expensive looking vase set on a nearby windowsill but she remained stoically silent.

-"Kateryna, I will be glad to talk some more later however I have ...hum... some business to attend too right now. I'll be back later. Don't worry I won't leave you alone, I thought you might want to talk with another woman about the whole situation."

.The woman that walked into the room

Bella

Bellatrix Lestrange wasn't considered a kind person, infact most people that had seen her in action considered her a psychotic bitch. Yet buried deep down, Bellatrix longed for love and affection. After the death of Romilda, her cousin and closest friend, she had started taking care of the newly orphaned baby and formed a very peculiar bond with the child. If there was one single person in that wretched world that Bellatrix would want to save it was her little Kat. When Yaxley had come to her, revealing that Antonin had just brought home Kateryna and that he requested her to keep his daughter company while he notified the Dark Lord, she had felt a sense of happiness that she usually experienced solely when serving her lord. As Bella was about to enter the Blue Salon, the door opened and Antonin walked out, looking uncharacteristically unsettled. They acknowledged each other with a nod and Antonin mouthed a thanks while hastily walking away. The girl was sitting on a chair, staring at her with dark eyes open wide, dumbfounded and seemingly panicked. She hastily tried to get up and in her panic knocked over her own chair, falling to the ground in an undignified couldn't help but notice the strong resemblance to Romilda in the girls' delicate features. Hesitantly Bella smiled, a gesture she didn't partake in very often.

"Hello Kateryna, you probably don't remember me, I'm Bella, I took care of you when you were a child."

Kateryna just stared at her her eyes growing wider as she started shaking. Finally she spoke, her low, soft voice barely audible

"You? You? You took care of me?"

Bella couldn't contain a throaty laugh, kneeling by Kateryna who as still sprawled on the floor. Putting her hand on the girl's cheek she whispered conspiratorially

"And what an annoying Baby you were!"

The girl look at her bewildered and visibly recoiled from her touch. Bellatrix would never admit it but the rejection stung.

-But you're...you're evil! you tortured Neville's parents! You killed Sirius! Why did you take care of me?

Bella felt her throat tighten, she had been called way worse but coming from the mouth of a girl that she used to love like her own mother her feel hollow. Trying to keep her temper in check she sat in an armchair across from Kat who had finally righted herself. The girl flinched as Bella leaned closer staring at her straight in the eyes

"You know me? How?" Her voice was even, calm. "Don't scare her Bella she already seems terrorized enough."

"You were at the ministry..."

"The ministry, you were there?" Bellatrix repeated, where did Kateryna come from she wondered?"

"Yes"

Bellatrix' mind went blank, her beloved girl was a blood traitor. She attempted to excuse the behavior, she after hadn't known that her blood was too pure to be tainted in such way. Trying to rid herself of the thought she attempted to determine who Kateryna had been before her rescue, inadvertently thinking out loud

"But there were only Lovegood, Potter, Longbottom, the Weasels and the..." suddenly she stopped. And stared at Kateryna. "Merlin's balls" she thought.

"You were the Granger girl"

Kat visibly clenched her jaw, her lithe form was shaking gently.

"Are you going to kill me?"

At this question, Bella couldn't help but laugh, not the disturbing, high pitched noise made when in the heat of battle but a real, warm laugh. Gently she pushed the girl's hair back from her face, tucking a chocolate strand behind her ear.

"Of course not dear, I'm here to help you. Merlin knows you'll need it."

"Help me?" sounding extremely suspicious, Kat irritably tapped her ridiculously small fingers on the edge of her seat. Bellatrix could understand it, she wasn't exactly the calmest or most sane person in the midst of battle which was the only way the girl had ever seen her.

"Well you weren't exactly raised as Pureblood... Do you know anything about your family history?"

"No"

Bellatrix clicked her tongue. She wasn't surprised, filthy muggles did not teach much to their children but it complicated her task.

"Ballroom Dancing?"

"Gods no"

Bella furrowed her brows at the distinctly muggle saying, she was familiar with the phrase but did not wish it to cross Kateryna's lips.

"Pureblood Courting"

"I have a very vague idea of what that is"

She sounded extremely tentative in her answer, which Bella interpreted as a resounding no.

"So you don't know that soon you will have dozens of suitors grovelling at your feet for a little bit of attention. Hoping to become your future husband and get access to your sizable dowry?"

"No. Wait! What? I'm not getting married anytime soon" Kat scoffed, rolling her eyes at the mere idea of marriage.

Bella smiled "Just what I told mother" she recalled

"That's what I said at your age too, there's no way to get out of it though so I advise you get used to the idea of being married off in a couple years."

Bella pitied Kat, she knew exactly how it felt to be forced into a wedding dress at the age of nineteen, with few prospects in life other than needlepoint and popping out heirs.

"They can't drag me up the aisle can they!?" Hermione seemed outraged "What about women's rights, I don't understand what's the point of being married so early?"

A dark chuckle escaped Bella, Kat reminded her of herself at her age. Romilda, he sister Cissy and all of her friends had been overjoyed at the prospect of marriage. Cissy would go on for days about her "absolutely dashing" Malfoy while Romilda would calmly state that Antonin was a strong, talented pureblood and that one day she would love him. She remembered her own engagement, her mother had to place a permanent sticking charm on the ring after Bella's sixth attempt to feed it to her aunt's cat.

"You really do need my help don't you?"

Kat bit the inside of her cheek, she seemed to adapt incredibly fast to the situation.

"Maybe" she finally conceded in small voice. Her face turning away as a tear threatened to fall from her long lashes. Bella wiped it away with her thumb, gently stroking her hair before leaving the room. She understood the longing for loneliness, but she was no fool, she cast a locking charm on the door before making her way down the hall.

Antonin

Antonin Dolohov was meeting with the Dark Lord for the second time today and it wasn't doing his nerves any good. " I wonder what his plans are for Kateryna"

"Oh don't worry about it Antonin no harm will come to you dear girl"

Antonin spun on his heels as the voice of the Dark lord rose from a corner of the room. Voldemort's ability to read mind never got any less unsetling

"I presume that you found her"

Kneeling respetully in front of his master he answered, unable to hide his small smile.

"Indeed my lord"

"Good, I will call a meeting in two hours bring the girl"

With these words he was gone. "That ...hum... man really has a penchant for dramatic exits" thought Anton as he went to retrieve his daughter. He sincerely doubted she would appreciate the news but she was a Dolohov now, their families loyalty laid with the Dark Lord.

Kat

If a week ago somebody had told Hermione that she would have had a pleasant conversation with notorious Death Eater Bellatrix Lestrange she would have laughed at them. It was happening though, yes Bellatrix was extremely hot headed, prejudiced and slightly neurotic but Hermione realized that Bella's allegiance to the Dark Lord was the women's only way to assert herself in the misogynistic pureblood society. After leaving her alone for about half an hour, Bellatrix had walked back in to a completely destroyed room. The painting on the wall had been ripped appart and the delicate crystal bowl on the coffee table now lay in shards on the floor. Hermione had been curled in a corner, her hand bleeding and her body wracked with sobs. Bella had lowered herself to the ground next to her shaking figure and gently healed the bloodied hand while stroking Hermione's hair. After righting the room with a few reparos she had nudged Hermione to sit on the sofa with a cup of hot tea. Passed the first awkward moments, Hermione and Bellatrix had settled in a sort of silent truce. Neither of them would mention tension-causing subjects such as mudbloods and house-elfs. They were laughing light heartedly at Hermione's recounting of the misadventures of Draco as the 'Amazing Bouncing Ferret' when a tall, good looking boy with dark hair and icy blue eyes came in, when he saw Hermione or rather Kateryna he stopped abruptly. Bellatrix's gaze flickered from the boy to Kateryna. She in turn looked at the boy, a mildly interested expression on her face.

"He didn't tell you did he"

Both she and the boy answered at the same time.

"Tell me what?"

Bellatrix sighed " Classic... idiotic men behavior..." she mumbled under her breath

"Kateryna this is your brother Cepheus. Cephy sweetheart, this is Kateryna your little sister"

Oh my! Hermione thought I have a brother. She expected panic to set in, just as it had with every previous revelation but this discovery actually brought her had always wished for a smirked at her

"I know my good looks are quite extraordinary but it wouldn't hurt if you actually said something. ..I mean you've been missing for what? 16 years?"

She could barely reply, Cepheus cocked his head to the side. Flashing her a very Slytherin-like grin.

-"I never saw you at school"

Cepheus rolled his eyes dramatically and answered with a laught.

"Wow original Kat!What a fascinating question! I go to Durmstrang.:

Hermione blushed at the taunt and was about to answer with a biting remark when her father burst into the room.

-"There will be a death eater meeting in less than two hours, Kateryna you are to attend. The Dark Lord is planning on introducing you to his followers."

Hermione started panicking, how would she survive a meeting with a roomful of death eaters. She was not known for wise silence in the face of danger and knew very well that she could not make a single wrong move with Lord Voldemort in the room.

"Please don't make me do this, please you know of my background it would be torture for me! He will look into my mind, he'll kill me. Please."

"You have no choice in the matter the Dark Lord himself requested your presence."

"What?"

Hermione's mind went coursing, this was all the end of an elaborate, twisted joke. Voldemort would torture her for information and then let her die a traitor to the order. She started trembling

-"It's a great honor Kateryna" Bellatrix interjected softly, pride tangible in every one of her words,it means he has taken an interest in you."

Hermione couldn't do it anymore, her knees buckled and she fell to the ground barely containing her tears

"I don't want the Dark Lord to take an interest in me! From this morning things have gone from bad to worse! I discovered my parents weren't really my parents and nobody even bothered to tell me how I ended up with them! The I discover my father is a Death eater that almost killed my friends and I just last year! After that I discovered I have a brother! What's next, you can't drop bombs on me like that every two seconds even I can't process that much information!"

Hermione would have laughed at Cepheus' questioning "bombs?" but she was losing all control of her body. Antonin was feeling more and more uncomfortable as he stared at his distressed daughter kneeling down besides her, he started patting her head in an attempt at a consoling gesture.

"Kateryna I realize this is a lot for you to process,as I told you before we still have to have a long discussion but if you want to know the truth, I have no idea how you ended up at those muggles' house but I suspect it was Dumbledore's work."

At the mention of her old parents Hermione regained enough composure to ask

"What will become of them, the Grangers, they don't know what happened to and must probably be looking everywhere for me!"

-They have been dealt with...

No, No, No Hermione thought, hoping that Dolohov didn't deal with her adoptive parents the way her vivid imagination was telling her he did

-"You didn't..."

-"Ou course not, I imagined you wouldn't appreciate it. They were obliviated."

Reassured, Hermione let out a sigh of relief and hesitantly tried to get up.

"Um, When is this meeting again?" she asked Dolohov, trying to keep her legs from shaking.

Her question was answered with three bright smiles.

**AN: So this is the edited version of chapter 1 after 2 whole years off of ffnet, I'm gonna start working on the others so I can hopefully start putting out new material in a couple weeks. I'm in the middle of my finals right now but as soon as I'm done with college for the year I'll have a LOT more free time. **

**Anyways, I took out a bunch of stuff that my 15 year old self considered super cool but that made me roll my eyes, such as Kat being part veela which I thought to be a bit over the top. I was hesitant at changing hermione's appearance at all but considering that in the BOOKS she looks nothing like emma watson and that I wanted her to actually look related to Belatrix (Bella, Andromeda and Narcissa's mom was a Rosier so Kat and Bella are second cousins) it wouldn't make sense for her to have gone unnoticed by purebloods for years if she wasn't under some kind of concealement charm. I imagine Kat to look like Italian acrtess Claudia Cardinale when she was young but that's just me. I also tried to expand a little bit on the ACTUALLY being shocked and upset part although I think hermione in the books is one of those people that would adapt quickly to a situation (but in the original Chapter 1 she sounded WAY too calm. **

**I have a pretty clear idea of where this is going now and hope you like it! Please, Please review and let me know how you like it (they make me write faster because I know that people are enjoying my stuff)- also let me know your favorite ships! My favorites are by far Hermione/Draco and Hermione/Tom Riddle (Hermione/Sirius black is also a sorta guilty pleasure of mine) I'm generally a Slytherin boys shipper, I just think that they're characters are layered because they're not ALWAYS bad people but their environments make them truly cruel and biggoted**

**Keep in mind the next chapters will prob not be edited for a couple more days. **

**Much Love - Fede**


	2. Chapter 2

**AN: Whoopee chapter two is here! The beginning of this chapter was a real bitch to write but I'm finally done! Hope it was worth the wait, I would have posted it yesterday but I decided to make it a bit longer!**

**Please review guys! :) Okay I'll stop annoying you and let you read! REVIEW though even just saying that you liked it (or not) is helpful!**

**Props to my beta Lolerator for being awesome ! **

* * *

Draco Malfoy would never get used to Death Eater meetings; the atmosphere was always heavy with fear and Draco couldn't stand the screams and grovelling of the Dark Lord's victims. Suck it up Draco, it's what you signed up for, he thought, sighing. What my dad signed me up for, actually.

The Dark Lord had said that he had great news for all of them, which by his standards could be anything from torturing an innocent ministry worker to killing a puppy. Next to him his friends, newbie Death Eaters Blaise Zabini, Theo Nott and of course his goons Crabbe and Goyle, seemed paralysed with fear. It was their third Death Eater meeting and the two previous ones had been particularly gruesome.

"My Death Eaters," the low chattering suddenly stopped as the Dark Lord entered the room. "I have wonderful news... Antonin! Make her come in!"

These words spiked Draco's curiosity. For some reason, he knew that the woman about to come in wouldn't be a sobbing victim ready for torture.

And Merlin, was he right! The goddess that entered the room looked well fed and cared for. She definitely wasn't one of Voldy's malnourished victims. There was a collective intake of breath around the room as every man in the assembly fell into an appreciative silence. Even the Dark Lord seemed fascinated. After a couple of seconds of silence he spoke again, his cold voice breaking the enchantment.

"Ah, she has inherited her mother's Veela genes! Interesting... Antonin would you do us the honour?"

Dolohov bowed deeply, the girl's gaze flickered from the Dark Lord to him. She looked slightly taken aback.

"It would be a pleasure, my Lord. This young women is my daughter Kateryna Cassiopeia Dolohov. You might remember her from the first war. She was taken from us during my... stay in Azkaban and forced to live in the muggle world!"

People around the room started whispering. Next to Draco, Blaise whispered, "Poor thing, I'll make her feel better," to which his friends grunted in agreement.

"Silence," the Dark Lord's voice had an edge to it and everybody knew that shutting up was the best thing to do if you valued your life. "Now that the news is out I believe Ms. Dolohov should be lead back to her living quarters. Antonin I need you to stay. Nott, Malfoy, Crabbe, Goyle, Zabini; I believe your sons wouldn't mind keeping her company."

Draco couldn't help but chuckle. "You have no idea how much I wouldn't mind," he muttered to himself.

* * *

Hermione was thoroughly confused. The Dark Lord wanted to meet her yet she only spent about a minute in the room. Now she was following the Slytherin brats out the door.

Great, just great. I would prefer Voldemort over these five!, she thought.

They arrived in a cozy sitting room with comfortable looking green and silver couches here and there. Classic Slytherin...

She carefully sat down on one of them while the five boys sat on the other, looking at her curiously.

"Kateryna, right?" Zabini asked quirking a brow.

"I'd prefer Kat, actually," she said with a smile. Where did that come from? She wondered. Don't be nice to the brats!

Malfoy reclined on his seat, stretching and revealing is wonderful abs. What are you thinking, Mione? Stop it this second!

Oblivious to the mental argument going on in the boys kept going.

"So Kat," he asked with a wink in her direction. Handsome, obnoxious, cocky prick! "Where did you go to school?"

"Hogwarts."

Before Hermione realized what she had said, all three of the boys were staring at her. Carefully, Theodore Nott spoke:

"I'm pretty sure we would have remembered a girl like you going to our school..."

Hermione blushed furiously as she mumbled, "I didn't exactly look the same."

All five boys looked at each other curiously, Draco leaned forward.

"Who were you Kateryna?"

She snapped her head up and smirked.

"I'm not going to tell you...where's the fun in that?" she said. Her smirk grew wider. If Harry and Ron could see me now, I'm behaving like a total Slytherin!, she thought with a mental grin.

Zabini immediately flashed her an identical smirk.

"Very well, Ms. Dolohov... If that's how you want to do it..."

The door opened and Cepheus walked in.

"Do what, guys? I hope you're not blackmailing my sister..." He was grinning evilly, which made Hermione doubt his words very much.

"Don't worry, my dear brother, these gentlemen are merely trying to figure out who I was..."

Her brother chuckled.

"This should be interesting..." he muttered.

* * *

If there was one thing Blaise Zabini hated, it was not knowing something. He was determined to discover Kateryna's old identity even if it took him hours. Once Ceph settled next to his sister he stated his questioning.

"Very well, Ms Dolohov... Which school year did you just finish?"

She smiled.

"Sixth."

He looked at his friends, flabbergasted. "We were in classes together! Okay... Were you a Slytherin?"

She burst out in a fit of giggles, her eyes glinting mischievously.

"No!"

"Ravenclaw?"

"Nope."

"Hufflepuff?" he asked cautiously "Please not Hufflepuff, even Gryffindor would be better!"

"God, no!"

"You're a Gryfindork?" Vince asked suspiciously. God what an idiot, she mentally rolled her eyes.

She stared at him slightly amused.

"Obviously..."

Suddenly, Draco spoke.

"You're not the Patil girl, that's for sure, she has a sister! And you're not the Brown chick either because she's a pureblood... Actually your father said you were raised by muggles and there's only one mudblood in Gryffindor..."

"I know..." She answered seriously.

Blaise couldn't believe it, that goddess was-

"Granger..." he whispered, his eyes widening.

"That's me..." she answered. "Sort of..." her voice was slightly sad as if she couldn't come to terms with it.

Draco Malfoy was going to have an heart attack. She's Granger?! She's Granger?! Mudblood Granger is a pureblood?! Merlin, what do I do? Apologize? No. Malfoys don't apologize! Maybe I should though, better get her on my good side... he thought desperately.

"I'm sorry"

Hermione couldn't believe it! Draco Malfoy was apologizing to HER!

"What?!"

He attempted a smirk.

"You heard me Granger, or Dolohov, whatever... Don't make me say it again. It wounds my pride."

Cepheus intervened. "What are you sorry for Malfoy, did you hurt my little sis?" His tone was menacing and she almost felt sorry for Draco.

"I might have called her a mudblood and insulted her a couple times..." He stared at his hands, folded in his lap, as if they were the most interesting things in the world.

Cepheus was furious.

"You did WHAT?!"

Hermione had to intervene before the whole situation degenerated. She didn't really want to help Malfoy, but would rather not have her brother beat anyone up!

"Ceph, it's fine! I dealt with him myself! He had no idea who I was at the time! Anyways, I punched him in the face during our third year that seems punishment enough!" The words left her mouth before she could stop herself. I should hate him, he let Death Eaters inside of Hogwarts, let Snape kill Dumbledore, he's a prat! Let Cepheus beat him up! It won't hurt to ruin his pretty face!, she reminded herself.

"You did what?" Blaise and Theo exclaimed. She smiled at Draco's face, slowly turning red. "That seems like punishment enough..."

"Only because I let her," Draco protested under his breath.

Theo, Ceph and Blaise all collapsed, tears of laughter running down their cheeks. Draco's face had taken a pretty strawberry colour and he seemed utterly pissed with the whole situation.

"Right everyone, have a good laugh at Draco! I swear if you don't stop this second I will strangle you all!"

"Sorry mate but this is way to funny, I thought you said you got hit by a bludger?"

Greg answered for Draco at that point.

"No kidding, do you think he would have admitted to being beaten up by a girl?"

The whole room erupted in a new fit of giggles, even Hermione had to admit the situation was hilarious! These Slytherins were strangely entertaining which she supposed was a good thing since she would be expected to spend time with them. She decided that the best thing to do was to call a truce with Draco. It would make things better for her in the future if she didn't have to put up with Malfoy's usual bickering!

Extending her hand towards Draco she smiled. "Friends?" she asked.

He looked at her for a couple seconds, apparently shocked. His gaze flickering from her hand to her face. Regaining his composure he smirked. "More than friends."

Hermione couldn't help but blush furiously.

* * *

The summer went by extremely fast and Hermione was starting to get used to this new life. The first days had been hard, she had sobbed in her bed at night feeling like a traitor for enjoying this new existence.

Why do I feel happy? She asked herself one night. I'm betraying everything I believed in by staying with a bunch of Voldemort followers!

However, the general good mood of Draco, Blaise, Theo and even Crabbe and Goyle was contagious.

For the first time Hermione felt like she belonged. With her old family, nobody would have understood what she was talking about when she started taking about trolls or the properties of dragon blood. The few times Hermione saw her Dad, he would listen to everything she had to say, no matter the subject.

Even Bellatrix had grown on her, strange as it might sound she had become a sort of surrogate mother of Hermione. Once you went past the crazy tendencies and hot-headed temper she was a very interesting person to talk with.

Before she knew it, Hermione had only one week of holiday left and it was time to go to Diagon Alley.

* * *

At the Burrow, a very worried Harry Potter was chatting with his best mate, Ron Weasley. Bill and Fleur's wedding had gone perfectly if it wasn't for one detail; Hermione was nowhere to be seen.

"I really don't know, mate, it seems as if she just vanished! She didn't answer any of my letters and Hedwig always comes back with an unopened letter!"

"Maybe she went on holiday?" Ron theorised.

"Seriously Ron, are you stupid? Why would she not tell us about it, she could at least send an owl!"

At that very moment they heard a tapping at the window and a majestic falcon flew into the room the second it was opened. Taking the letter Harry started reading;

Hey guys, it's Hermione!

It seems I have a lot of explaining to do...

* * *

"C'mon Kat! We're gonna be late! I thought you of all people would be sensible to that!"

"I'm coming! I'm coming!"

She rushed out of the bathroom, pulling on her tights and trying to put on her necklace at the same time. Levitating her trunk she rushed down the stairs and stopped when she saw five pair of wide eyes and heard a small chuckle from her brother.

Over the past few weeks, Kateryna had let Bella convert her into a perfect pureblood girl, for Merlin's sake she even started enjoying shopping!

Today was a big day and she definitely wanted to look nice as she was going to be re-introduced to all of Hogwarts. She was wearing a flowy blue-green dress with a keyhole neckline that hit her mid thigh leaving her long legs bare. On her feet was a pair of strappy silver, 3 inch heels. Her wavy hair was collected in a high ponytail, a few strands of hair let loose framing her face. She put her emerald green cloaked on and smiled at the gawking boys.

"I want a fresh start, say goodbye to goody two shoes Hermione Granger!"

Harry's and Ron's rejection had really hurt Kateryna and had triggered a profound change in her behavior. They never replied to her letter, sending her back the falcon without an answer which seemed like a good enough sign that they wanted nothing to do with her anymore.

"Ceph, are you sure you want to transfer to Hogwarts? I mean you don't have to do it for me!"

Ceph smirked at her.

"And who would keep an eye on her little sister! I don't want you to be attacked by hordes of enamoured boys! Anyways, I need to make sure you behave as a real Slytherin."

"How can you be so sure I'll end up in that pit of snakes?"

"Look at your outfit Kat!"

"Oh right. Well, I made an educated guess on my house and decided to dress appropriately..."

The truth was, Hermione knew she would end up in Slytherin. She remembered Harry mentioning that the hat would send you where you wanted to go and she had no intention to face the hostile population of any other house. If that was Harry and Ron's reaction imagine what the others will think... At least in Slytherin they'll fear my father and the boys will stand up for me...

Draco chuckled and grabbed her waist.

"Slytherin colours suit you, love." Kateryna blushed furiously.

"Malfoy, hands of my sister!"

"I don't know, Ceph, I think she rather enjoys it."

Kateryna spun around.

"God Draco, you are exasperating! Let's go guys, I don't want to miss the train."

* * *

"Coming through, coming through!"

Blaise pushed his way through the mass of students searching for a compartment. He stopped in front of a door where two terrorised first years were trying to catch a loose owl. He pushed the door open, startling the children that stared at him with wide eyes.

"You two, out of here now, this is our compartment!"

The scared students scurried of as fast as they could.

"Blaise was that really necessary?" Kateryna sighed.

"This has been our compartment for years; I don't see why we should give it up this year!"

Kateryna knew better than to start arguing about something as futile as a compartment. Sitting next to the window she opened a book and started reading.

"Kaaaat, you can't possibly start reading now! This is our last time in the Hogwarts express, you can't waste it like that!" Draco's voice was whiney and he sounded more like a five year hold than like the attractive man he had become. Eww, Brain! Why are you doing this to me! I'm not attracted to Draco!

"Draco's right, you can't possibly spend the whole ride with you nose buried in that book," Ceph snatched the book from her hand and started flipping through it.

"Properties of dragon blood...blah...blah...cursed weapons...blah... Why are you even reading this?"

Exasperated Kateryna huffed. "Because, DEAR brother, I intend to actually graduate! It never hurts to study the course information previous to the beginning of the year! Now GIVE. ME. BACK. MY. BOOK!" she enunciated the last part very slowly as if talking to a young child.

"Nope! We're teaching you how to have fun!"

Theo nodded frantically.

"I agree! We'll introduce you to the girls! I'm sure you and Daphne will get along wonderfully!"

At that all the boys started chuckling. Theo turned towards them.

"What?"

Greg looked at him an impish grin on his face.

"Well, we all know that you fancy Daphne!"

"I...I... that's not true!"

"What's not true?" a feminine voice asked.

Four girls were leaning against the door of the compartment. The one that spoke had big blue eyes, delicate features and long blonde hair. Kateryna recognised her as Daphne. Behind her a tall, curvy girl with dark hair, tanned skin and piercing green eyes could be no other than Millicent Bulstrode. Wow, she looks way better than she used to.

Next to her, Pansy Parkinson was fidgeting. Just like Millicent, time was doing wonders on her; she had grown into her pug nose and it looked way smaller than it used to. Her small long-lashed almond eyes and full lips were enhanced by her light make-up and stylish haircut. She was overall way prettier than what Kat remembered. Or maybe you were just biased.

Finally, a petite girl with auburn hair and green eyes that could only be Tracey Davis.

Theo blushed when his crush entered the compartment.

"It's nothing, Daphne."

The girl eyed him suspiciously and turned towards Kateryna.

"Hey! I'm Daphne Greengrass and you are?" Her gaze was soft as she extended her hand and smiled. Kateryna immediately took a liking to the girl.

"I'm Kateryna Dolohov, but you can call me Kat, nice to meet you!"

"Oh, so you're Ceph's long lost sister?"

"You now my brother?" Kat was surprised by the fact that these two knew each other, after all they went to different schools! Cepheus answered for Daphne.

"Well around here, everybody knows everybody, sis. We met at some ball a few years ago."

Feeling foolish, Kateryna blushed. Fortunately for her, Draco decide to help.

"So who wants to terrorize the first years?" He asked mischievously. His remark resulted in a chorus of "Draco!" and "Good idea, mate!" successfully diverting the attention from Kat's mishap.

Turning back to Kateryna the girls started chattering happily.

"I swear - my dad's on the school board - we're having a back-to-school dance!"

"I can't believe it, I need to get dress robes!"

"And find a date!"

"You know who I find hot?"

"Who?"

"Potter"

"Oh my god, Tracey!"

"If the guys hear you!"

"Guys, Harry is not unattractive, and Quiditch really muscled him up!"

Every single girl turned towards Kat. "You're on a first name basis with Potter?"

They sounded incredulous and slightly intrigued. Kat felt terrible hiding her previous identity from them.

"Oh, so you don't know?"

"What?"

"I didn't always look like this...Before my dad found me, I had a completely different identity. I thought I was a muggleborn...

The girls looked at each other trying to figure out her identity. Strangely, Millicent was the first to figure it out. "Oh my god."

Next to her a looked of realization dawned on Pansy. "God I'm so sorry..."

Finally Daphne said it. "Granger?"

Kateryna smiled weakly.

"That's me. I mean, sort of..."

Pansy continued staring at her. "I'm so sorry, you're nothing like I thought you were..."

Kat stared at her.

"So you don't mind?"

"Why would I? You were never mean to me and you're super nice! Actually, you should hate me..."

"You're nothing like what I thought you were either... And Harry and Ron hate me now..."

"What!?" Every girl in the compartment seemed shocked.

"Just because your dad is a you-know-what they don't want to be your friend anymore?"

"And I thought Potty was supposed to be the forgiving type..."

"We're going to give them hell this year!" That one came from Daphne and Kateryna couldn't help but giggle.

"I don't need you guys to help for that! If they make a single step in my direction, Ceph will probably strangle them!"

They all burst out laughing.

The afternoon was spent chatting happily. The girls inquired about her life as Hermione Granger, especially her relationship with Viktor. The boys had left the compartment a while ago to go "pay a visit to Weaselbee and Scarhead" and no amount of begging from Kateryna would have swayed them. Draco pointed out that he wanted to "rub it in their face that the hottest and smartest witch of our age is on our side now" which had left her speechless for a few minutes.

Towards the end of the afternoon Kat felt the need to take a walk and getting up left the compartment.

"I'm coming back girls!"

"Sure! If you see the Honeydukes Express, buy some Pumpkin Pasties!"

Kateryna was walking aimlessly towards the front of the train when she walked in front of her usual compartment. There, Harry and Ron where playing Exploding Snaps. Kat felt an inexplicable rage overwhelm her, opening the door to the wagon she walked in. The boys turned towards them, eyes wide, mouth agape. Ron was the first one to speak.

"Um, can I help you? Are you new?"

"I...I can't believe it! Ronald, you're stupider that what I thought! It's me, Hermione, or rather Kateryna!"

Rage dawned on the boys' face.

"Get out Dolohov, I don't want anything to do with you!"

Harry's words stung and Kat felt tears streaking her cheeks.

"My family doesn't define me, Harry, I thought you would understand that being raised by these horrible Muggles!"

Now Harry seemed positively furious.

"These Muggles as you call them are NOT my family! And even if they were, at least they never killed anyone!"

"Enough Potter!"

Her brother's voice shook Kat out of her trance as she ran into the closest pair of arms, which turned out to be Draco's.

"Who are you?" Ron snarled.

Cepheus seemed overwhelmed by anger

"I am Cepheus Marcellus Dolohov and that's my little sister you're mistreating!"

"I think that Hermione can protect herself well enough."

Draco pulled out his wand and placed Kateryna behind him.

"Her name his Kateryna you dimwit and you stop upsetting her Weaselbee! You're just disgusted you never got to do her and now she won't even give you a second glance!"

"I don't think Ron's interested in fucking Death Eater spawn."

Harry's crude words were to much for Kat, she collapsed on the floor sobbing. Instantaneously, Draco was beside her holding her tight. After that, Kateryna didn't remember much apart from an series of shouts a loud cracking sound and Harry swearing loudly. Before she knew it, she was in Cepheus' arms and he was bringing her back to their compartment.

"Oh my god, what happened?" Daphne's voice seemed distant to Kat as she continued sobbing softly. Blaise sat next to her patting her back softly.

"Scarhead being a prick and the Weasel being… well... himself."

Pansy kneeled in front of her and taking her hands she whispered, "Seriously, ignore them, they're just horribly jealous. Do what you used to do when we taunted you about your hair or your teeth. They're no different. What they did was very low, friends are supposed to always support you!"

Kateryna's eyes hardened.

"You're right, their behaviour was childish and I'm not going to make anymore efforts to make them accept my new identity!"

The rest of the trip was spent trying to divert Kat's attention from the upsetting episode. An hour before arriving, the boys went looking for another compartment to let the girls change. Kat slipped her school clothes on and was surprised by how unflattering they looked. She had never thought about it before but the skirt was too long, the shirt to snug and the robes too snug. Pansy, noticing her stern expression, giggled.

"Yeah, these clothes are horrible, but it can be fixed! Look at me!"

With a flick of her wand the school skirt was shortened to a few inches above her knees, the shirt's fabric was softened making it look slightly sheer. Another flick and the shirt clung to Pansy's breasts like a second skin, a few buttons popping open. With a last flick, the knee length socks disappeared and the regulation shoes were turned into a pair of high heeled boots. Around Kat, every single girl was repeating the gestures. Kat pulled out her wand and shortened her own skirt and shrunk her shirt. The only difference from Pansy's uniform was a pair of strappy black heels.

"Wow Kat, I'm loving the shoes!"

"Thanks Daph! Make your skirt any shorter and we'll have a nice view of your knickers!"

The girls burst out laughing while Daphne mumbled a spell to lengthen the skirt a few inches.

* * *

"Let's go girls we're here!" Theo said peeking inside the compartment a hand over his eyes.

"Theo what are you doing?" asked Daphne slightly amused.

"I wouldn't want to tarnish my innocence by laying my eyes upon exposed flesh."

The girls giggled.

"Don't be stupid Theo, we're all very decent!"

Pretending to be terrified of what he might see, Theo slowly opened his eyes taking the time to look Daphne up and down, making her take on a lovely shade of pink. With a wink he asked, "Are you ready?"

Everybody got of the train and Kateryna finally felt at home in the familiar setting. Grabbing her by the waist Draco, started walking towards the carriages.

"Oh Merlin," Pansy whispered

Everybody spun around looking at her.

"I can see them, the Thestrals... " She looked taken aback by the skeletal horses and refused to take another step forward.

"Don't worry Pans, I think everyone of us can see them now."

Everyone nodded in agreement. I wonder who the girls saw dying, they're not death eaters so it couldn't be at the meeting.

Once in the carriages the conversation resumed but it seemed almost forced as everyone tried to forget about the thestrals.

"So Kat, do you think you'll be in Slytherin?"

"Oh, I'm sure!"

"How can you be so certain? I mean, last time you were put in Gryffindor..."

"I know for a fact that the sorting hat puts you in the house you want to be in."

"Really?! So we're only in Slytherin because we wanted to be?"

"Not really you are placed in the house where you belong, but you can request a different house if you really don't like the house where the hat wants to place you."

"Guys, I think the carriage stopped."

In the entrance hall Professor McGonagall was waiting for the first years, when Kateryna walked next to her she grabbed her arm.

"Miss Dolohov, sit at any table, you and your brother will be sorted after the first years."

"Thank you, professor."

Her former head of house smiled softly.

."You'll always be welcome in Gryffindor house, Kateryna"

"I wouldn't be so sure Professor," Kat answered sadly as she followed her new friends inside the great hall.

* * *

"Ah, Miss Dolohov... What an interesting case you are... I sorted you in Gryffindor the first time... What will it be this time around? Let's see...you do not feel like you belong in you old house anymore...but there is plenty of bravery in your heart. Maybe Ravenclaw? Definitely not Hufflepuff, you are loyal but not selfless enough...Better be...

"SLYTHERIN!"

The Slytherin table went wild, her brother smiling at her proudly as he clapped as loud as he could.

"Good job, Kit-Kat!" Millicent exclaimed.

"Millie, I don't know why I ever told you about Kit-Kats! I hate that nickname!"

The Slytherin simply smirked at her. Huffing exasperatedly, Kat sat down at the table.

"God I'm so hungry! I'm glad Dumbledore made his speech before sorting us, at least we get to eat as soon as the exciting part is over!" Cepheus mumbled while piling food onto his plate.

"Cepheus Marcellus! I'll have you know that the headmaster's speech is extremely important! Especially for new students like yourself!" Kateryna was extremely annoyed at her brother, how could anyone, apart from the dimwitted Ronald Weasley, considered the headmaster's speech unimportant.

"Whatever you say... KIT-KAT..." her brother answered with an evil smile.

With a sigh Kateryna started eating her dinner. Before they knew it, the feast was over and the last of the chocolate cake vanished from their plates.

"I can't wait to see the Slytherin dormitory!" Cepheus exclaimed. "Dad told me it's a great place to hang out!"

Tracey smiled softly at Cepheus and grabbed his arm.

"Let's go then!"

Kateryna shook her head amused by Tracey's behaviour, could the girl make it anymore obvious?

Together they all started walking towards the dungeons chattering excitedly.

* * *

**AN: Hope you liked it! I promise there will be more Draco/Hermione(Kateryna) interaction soon but I'm trying to be realistic here! And I did include some flirting give me credit for that :p.**

**Please review to give me ideas on what to do next, I don't know how to open the next chapter! REVIEWS make me write faster (I hope that's an incentive :P)**

**But seriously guys almost 400 views and 4 reviews :9 my little heart breaks. If you don't want to spend forever commenting just say that you like it or something like that ... Okay I'm done ranting!**

**I have a few questions for you guys though, who's your favorite character? Should I have some romantic interaction between Hermione and Blaise, nothing serious but just to make Drakey-poo jealous? Should I develop the relationship between Theo and Daphne? I'm unsure about what pairings I want I was thinking Tracey and Cepheus and maybe Pansy with Blaise, I want Millie to end up with Crabe or Goyle not sure which yet... I know that Harry and Ron are prats in this chapter, and in this story in general but it was the easiest way to push Kat to accept her new life! Also if you have suggestion of events that should happen (ex:Yule Ball...) feel free to tell me about it in the review or PM me :p!**

**Also I'm being super nice to you guys by writing this because I have the biggest paper ever due in a few days and I'm totally procrastinating on my homework by writing this so please review (cute puppy eyes) it would be a nice way to acknowledge that I'm sacrificing my good grades in English just to write fanfic (just kidding :P ) I feel like I'm repeating the word review way to much in these author notes! I promise I'll put less of them If you actually do it !**

**Oh and chappie 3 should be here by Wednesday hopefully (depends on how long swim practice is and how much homework I get) I'm a little bit less than halfway through writing, I got about 1500 words in tonight so I hope to post it really soon!**


	3. Chapter 3

**AN:Heyyyyy! Chapter 3 is here! Thank you sooo much for all the nice reviews!1 I'm to lazy to write an AN but I'll figure something to write up here soon (probably some rant you're not missing out on anything!) Anyways please review ! I hope you enjoy this chappie, I'm clarifying a few things such as why Hermione is going along with everything without protesting...hope it will give you some insight... Anyways another problem raised in the reviews was that it seems like a very OC thing to do for Voldy to go search for some lost pureblood heir. Obviously he has ulterior motives first of all the bigger the better and Kat will be another faithfull death eater if her dad is able to force her into it, second there aren't that many pureblood women to give birth to a new generation of death eaters, third she is the daughter of a faithful follower and there is a possibility that he will be able to indoctrinate her, also losing Hermione is a huge blow to the boys. I mean there are only advantages for the Dark Lord in this situation. He gets a lot of payoff for a minimum effort...**

**Anyways I'll stop making excuses for myself now so enjoy! And REVIEW please :) Also, I'm kind of new to this fanfiction thing but I saw you can put stories into communities how does that work?**

Antonin Dolohov was lounging in his room when he heard the distinctive tapping of an owl at the window. after giving the bird a pat on the head and a few treats he turned to the piece of parchment it delivered.

_Dear Father_

_I have great news, Kateryna has been sorted into Slytherin just as we hoped. She is doing great! You already witnessed that the boys of the house at taken a liking to her but the girls seem to appreciate her too. I noticed a lot of men eyeing her but she seems oblivious to it, you might want to inform everyone about your intentions regarding Kateryna's marriage... I'm sure both the Malfoy heir would be very interested in courting her. Men from other houses also seem interested, McLaggen's son Cormac has made it very obvious that he wouldn't mind getting involved with Kat. She put him back in her place, though she hasn't stopped mumbling about "escaping him once and not going through it again" . Potter and Weasley have been atrocious to her, it took all of my willpower not to Avada Kedavra them on the spot. My knuckle is very swollen from breaking Potter's nose though. Anyways everything seems to be going for the best_

_Hope to hear from you soon_

_Cepheus Marcellus Dolohov_

Antonin couldn't help but chuckle at his son's words. But the content of the letter made him furious. "How dare that Scarheaded prat mistreat my daughter ?" . Grabbing a quill he started scribbling a response

"McLaggen, I swear if you don't get away from me now I will curse the hair off your head!"

Kateryna was furious, Cormac McLaggen, the bane of her existence since sixth year had just tried to kiss her!

"Don't worry sweetheart I know you're worried about house rivalries and everything but you're totally hot so we can work our way around it!"

"The only thing I want to work my way around is you!"

"But I don't understand..."

Sighing Kat drew her wand

"I'm so sorry Cormac" not feeling the slightest bit of guilt as she whispered "Petrificus Totalus"

Behind her Daphne was stifling her giggles by pressing both her hands on her mouth while Blais was positively gone, shaking on the ground holding his ribs unable to stop laughing.

"Let's go guys!" Kateryna said as she started walking away

"Kat!"

She decided to ignore it, annoyed at all the persons that had been pestering her since this morning.

"KAT!"

She spun around and huffed

"What?"

Theo was smirking at her

"The dungeons are this way"

He said, pointing to the opposite direction Kateryna had been taking. She blushed, embarrassed by her outburst and jogged back to her smirking friends:

"Your sister's got quite a temper Ceph..." Greg noted

"Yeah! Tell me about it!" Ceph mumbled

Pansy was smirking at her evilly

"So you and McLaggen uhh?"

"Don't even go there Pansy!"

"Is he a good kisser?"

"Millie!" Greg exclaimed "I swear if your father heard you!"

Kateryna looked at Daphne and mouthed "Is there something going on between these two?"

Daphne's eyes were twinkling with mischief as she nodded "He's had a crush on her for forever"

"Oh god Greg you're not the boss of me!" Millicent huffed, exasperated.

"I know! I'm just saying it for you!"

Pansy looked at Daphne and Kat and mouthed "so much sexual tension". Kateryna giggled

"Millie I swear you're really not missing out on anything he's a terrible kisser"

"Wait you kissed HIM?" Draco exclaimed sounding strangely bothered

Draco couldn't believe it, his Kat actually kissed the annoying prat. He felt anger bubble up in his chest as he imagined Kateryna in the Gryffindor's arms, _"What the hell Draco! She's hot so what? There are a lot of other hot girls at the school! Good am I turning soft?"_ he wondered a little bit unsettled at his reaction.

"Hum actually he kissed me at Slughorn's party last year but let's not even go there it literally traumatized me!"

A strange wave of relief swept over Draco as he resumed walking, listening amusedly to Millie and Greg's constant bickering

"Oh my god here we are! I'm so excited to show you the dorms! You'll love it!

Tracey was jumping up and down excitedly as her and Daphne were trying to fill Kat in on everything that ever happened in the Slytherin common room

"In fourth year Draco got firewhiskey from his father and we had a giant party!"

"Once Vince forgot to put his clothes on when getting out of bed and he started going to breakfast in his boxers!"

"For Christmas we all opened presents together in the Boys dormitory"

"Yeah! And last year Theo's aunt sent him a pair of pink boxers with hearts on it!"

"Hey!" Theo exclaimed "That's a lie! Stop spreading that stupid rumor around!"

All five girls started giggling furiously and Draco decided to take matters into his own hands.

Standing in front of the stone snake guarding the common room he whispered the password

-"Pure"

The Slytherin common room was nothing like what Hermione expected. It was a long dungeon like room with a high, arched ceiling. Being under the lake, the light looked slightly green giving the room an eerie atmosphere that was compensated by the huge fire crackling in the middle of the room. There were plush couches scattered here and there and a long dark leather sofa in front of the fireplace. Greg promptly plopped onto the sofa spreading out and leaving little space for Vincent and Theo. Daphne and Tracey sat down on the thick carpet while Draco and Blaise lounged on a pair of armchairs. Cepheus promptly sat on the remaining one while Millie and Pancey sat on a pair of identical green poufs

"You can sit with me if you want to..." Draco at her suggestively and Kat decided to take him down a notch.

"Are you sure? I mean, I don't know if your feeble constitution could take it

Draco glowered at her and in a swift move snaked his hand around her waist and pulled, making her fall quite ungracefully on his lap

"I DO NOT have a feeble constitution"

Pressed against his hard chest Kateryna couldn't help but agree.

"This is our spot" Blaise informed her "It's your duty to terrorize any first year trying to take it over understood?"

She glared at him

"Blaise you can't expect me to terrorize little kids!"

Blaise quirked an eyebrow

"Why not?"

Kateryna was surprised at how much fun she managed to have with the Slytherin. They spent the whole evening making small talk. After a while the boys all started talking together all hushed tones and worried expression about what Kateryna suspected to be 'Death Eater Business'. Choosing to ignore it she focused on the girl's conversation. Daphne was talking excitedly

"Okay let's rate the guys at the school this year"

Kat glared at her

"Seriously?"

Tracey returned her glare

"Obviously, Boys should be your number one preoccupation! I mean you could get pretty much any guy at this school!"

"That's not even true, Tracy look at you! I mean you're just as pretty as I am and anyways I don't want just any guy"

Millie looked at her a shark-like smile on your face

"Oh... so you have a crush..."

"What no!"

Pansy giggled

"You're a terrible liar sweetheart"

"Ok you win let's talk about boys!"

Her diversion worked as Daphne started clapping her hand excitedly and listing names

"Ernie MacMillan?"

"Eww what are you Daphne?"

"Yeah I agree with Pansy" Tracey said "He's a pompous ass!"

"Guys we're talking about looks here" Kat noted "Ernie is not that ugly!"

"He's not attractive either!"

"Okay next!"

"Harry Potter" The suggestion came from Millie, all the girls looked at her and then at Kat. They looked slightly uncomfortable and she decided that the best way to break the ice with them and get past this awkward phase was to go with the flow

"Harry's pretty hot, especially thanks to Quiditch"

Relief seemed to wash over the girls' face as they started discussing Harry's looks

"He'd be better without the glasses!"

"He's pretty muscular now, Do you think he has nice abs?"

"Pansy if you parents heard you!"

"What? I can't resist guys with scars!"

The night went on as the girls discussed everything from muggle culture to pureblood tradition. The Slytherins were especially impressed by Kat's description of a muggle television. "Wow you can actually watch books! That's awesome!" Millicent exclaimed and before she knew it Kat had promised to find a way to make the girls watch Titanic. "It sounds so romantic" Daphne sighed "Who knew muggles could be so human!". Kat decided not to comment on that last sentence but it gave her hope for the Slytherin. _"Maybe they'll understand the flawed logic of Pureblood ideology"_ she hoped. When they decided to go to bed around one in the morning, Kateryna felt at home._ "Who knows,I might really belong here..."._ Slipping under the green sheets, Kat closed her eyes and fell asleep with a smile on her face.

The next morning, Kat was woken up by Pansy and Tracy's loud babbling. On the other side of the room Millie was trying to get a little bit more sleep, a pillow pressed against her ears while Daphne was picking out clothes from her trunk.

"I really hope we don't have potions with the Gryffindork this year, it makes Snape especially foul!"

"Yeah I agree but it's more entertaining than with the Hufflepuff! Oh hey Kat!"

Kateryna barely grunted in response and proceeded taming her hair

"Nice bedhead Dolohov" Leaning against the doorframe, Draco was smirking at her. Daphne promptly silenced him with a pillow to his head.

"Malfoy out of here now! What if we were naked?"

"I would have really enjoyed the view" another voice drawled

"Theodore Nott I swear if you don't wipe that obnoxious smirk of your face I'll hex you into tomorrow! Am I being clear?" Daphne asked in feigned exasperation

"I don't know Daph, maybe I could help you change? Daphne glowered at him

"Oh ok you don't want an helping hand? I'll wait for you guys downstairs then. C'mon Drake!"

With one last wink Draco walked out of the room following his friend.

"They get more annoying every year..." Millie noted, she just got out of bed but looked ready to fall back asleep any second.

"Do they do that often?" Kat asked.

"Coming up here? Yeah...it's sort of a ritual for them, they bug us for five minutes and then wait for us downstairs"

"Aren't the stairs supposed to turn into a slide when they try to get upstairs?"

Daphne looked at her with wide eyes

"Why would the stairs do that?"

"Well that's how it was in the Gryffindor girl's dormitory!"

"But why?!" Pansy exclaimed "That's such a stupid rule, the guys have been hanging around our dorm for years!"

Walking downstairs the girls kept on comparing differences between houses. In the common room Blaise, Theo, Draco, Ceph, Vince and Greg were waiting.

"Finally!" Ceph exclaimed "Could it take you girls any longer to get ready?"

Blaise snickered

"Get used to it mate, we've had to stand it for a few years!"

The group of girls glowered at him and he shot them a smirk in response. As they were walking towards the door a pretty brunette walked up to them. Stopping in front of Draco she put both her hands on his chest, tugging on his tie.

"Hi Draco" she purred her voice low and husky. Draco looked surprisingly uncomfortable as he shot his friends a pleading look. Strangely Daphne was the one to intervene:

"Astoria get over yourself! How many time did I tell you Draco is NOT interested now leave us alone!

The girl didn't even look at her, instead she started to toy with Draco's belt buckle

"Oh but this isn't any of your business, I'm sure Draco isn't very interested aren't you Drake? One night together and he'll beg me to be the next Mrs. Malfoy..."

"Astoria if you really want to be a slut do it somewhere else!" Daphne huffed as she pushed the girl away from Draco.

"Let's go guys!"

As they walked out of the common room Kat turned to the Slytherins

"Who was THAT?"

Daphne let out an exasperated sigh

"THAT was Astoria Greengrass, my exasperating little sister. She's set her sights on Draco and he's too polite to tell her to fuck off."

Malfoy glared at her

"Daphne I would never insult your sister, I know you care about her. Astoria is a pain in the arse sometimes but she isn't really hurting anyone and she really entertains both of these idiots" he noted pointing at Theo and Blaise that were re-enacting the previous scene in high pitched voices

"Oh! Dracoooo let me rest my unworthy hands upon your perfectly chiseled Malfoy chest!" Blaise shrieked pretending to fawn over an imaginary Draco while Theo was doing his best not to laugh by shoving his full fist in his mouth.

"Blaise!" Pansy scolded " Please be nice! This is still Daphne's sister you're talking about"

Daphne smiled softly

"Seriously Pans it's fine, everybody know my sister is acting like a cheap whore..."

As they walked towards the Great Hall Kat couldn't help but wonder how sisters could dislike each other that much. The Slytherin might be cunning and ambitious but they seemed to value family loyalty above anything else ,however, Daphne seemed to be going against everything she thought she knew about the Slytherins. _"They sure are a peculiar bunch"_ she thought sadly, she would never admit it to anyone but she really missed her old life but she knew that there was no way to go back to it now _"I just have to go with the flow..."_

Walking into the Great Hall was a terribly uncomfortable experience for Kat. Every face was turned towards her and she could hear whispered "Death Eater", "Hermione", "Traitor"... Draco seemed to notice her discomfort as he gently put a hand on her lower back and urged her on to the Slytherin table, shooting death glares at any one that dared to stare for too long. The tension was palpable was everyone started eating their breakfast. Kateryna noticed that Vince and Greg piled food on their food as fast as they could reminding her of a certain redhead friend of hers.

"So Trina what's your schedule?" Blaise asked between bites of food

Kat shot him a glare

"That is not happening Blaise forget any nickname you might ever want to call me!"

Of course, he barely shot her a smirk

"Oh I don't know I really like this new nickname of yours... Tri-na..." He said emphasizing each syllable "It has a nice ring to it."

"Seriously Blaise stop messing with her." Pansy huffed "what do you have first though?"

Kat looked down at her new schedule

"Potion with the Gryffindors" she groaned "Snape is going to be absolutely horrid! I don't know what he has against Gryffindors!"

Everybody shot her a glare

"C'mon Guys don't be idiots I was a Gryffindor and you like me!"

Daphne pretended to think about it

"Let's say you're an exception! I mean we can't go against traditions, what would our parents say if we started fraternizing with Gryffindorks."

Kat knew better to argue against the Slytherin as she was well aware that the prejudice went both ways. She decided to pick at her food instead.

"Are you gonna eat those?" Greg asked pointing at her barely touched pancakes. She smiled

"Go for it...I'm not hungry anymore."

Greg flashed her a smile and proceeded to wolf down the remaining food. She couldn't take it anymore, this wasn't normal, this was never supposed to happen...She got up

"Guys I'm gonna go, I'll see you in potion"

A chorus of "See you" rose behind her as she walked out of the Great Hall, bumping straight into Harry. He didn't even give her a second glance and kept walking while bitterness overcame Kat.

"Harry wait!"

He kept on walking

"Please can we talk! I...I don't understand

Harry spun around took her arm and dragged her into an empty classroom, his face a mask of anger.

"What don't you understand Dolohov? You choose your Death Eater family over us, you made your choice.

"That's not fair of you to say and you know it." She whispered, tears threatening to start streaming down her cheek. Harry crossed his arms.

" How is that not fair? You had a choice! You choose Dark over Light! You choose Voldemort over me"

Kateryna was positively furious

"It's not that simple and you know it! When my father kidnapped I knew it was foolish to fight! Not matter what happens he will always be able to get to me! I thought that if I went with it I might get information for the order. But then I met my brother and time went by and it actually felt good to finally have a family that understood my and my world. And for some strange reason they started growing on me, all of them! I don't know why or how but they actually accept me for who I am! Even Bellatrix Lestrange has been more accepting than you have! Don't get me wrong, they're still a bigoted bunch that dislikes muggles and muggleborns but as long as we don't argue about it, I'm fine! You are just as bad if not worse than them because you can't even accept the fact that your best friend isn't who she thinks she is! I should be upset not you!

Tears were now pouring out of her eyes even though she did her best to try and contain them

"Hermione I don't even understand why you try and get along with them! They've been horrible to you for years and are only being nice because you're a pureblood!"

"I didn't forget all of the verbal abuse Harry, I didn't forget anything but I choose to forgive them. Right now they're absolutely all I've got and like it or not they're great friends. And you know what? I don't really care why they started liking me now, all that matters is that someone is there with me to help me with what I'm going through and it isn't you"

"How do you expect ME to react when I open a letter telling me that you're the daughter of one of the most trusted servants of the maniac that tried to kill me!"

"I expected you to understand that I have NO choice in the matter, I'm done arguing with you Harry if you don't want to understand why I did it, then the blame's on you!"

With these words she walked out of the classroom, slamming the door on her way out. She ran as fast as she could towards the potion classroom and slammed into someone for the second time that day.

"Hoi watch where you're going! Oh sorry Kat it's you!"

Draco was looking at her worriedly

"What happened?"

"It's nothing"

"Really? Are you sure?" Draco asked sarcastically while brushing a tear off her cheek

"Yeah, I'm fine. It's over now..."

"Kateryna?"

"Yes?"

"I know we've been horrible to you in the last years but I want to make it up to you. I never took the time to get to know you when you were a muggleborn and Potty's sidekick but now that I know just how wonderful a person you are, I want you to trust me. Trust us."

"Thank you Draco...I'm kind of confused right now I don't know what to think anymore"

He smirked at her

"The insufferable Gryffindor know-it-all doesn't know something?"

"Oh shut up Draco!" She said brightening up as she tapped his arm lightly. He caught his arm and held her hand.

"Kateryna, I.. well...I really like you, you know."

She let out a dry laugh

"Please Draco...I'm not falling for that! Everybody knows your a player, you fuck them and you dump them I'm not that bad"

Kat was too surprised by her own crudeness to notice the shocked look that Draco threw her way as he whispered

"You're too smart for your own good Dolohov..."

Draco Malfoy was extremely confused. He had turned on his legendary Malfoy yet Kat wasn't falling for it. _"What the hell..."_ he thought, no girl had ever resisted him. He had everything: looks, blood, money, influence,fame... Kateryna didn't seem to be falling for it and it thoroughly annoyed him. He remembered his father's words "She would be a suitable Malfoy bride, I trust you will do your best to woo her" at the time the mission had seemed like a piece of cake. Draco didn't even mind, Kat was definitely pretty smart and not half as annoying as the average female. Her rejection stung, _"She definitely doesn't have a very high opinion of me..."_ he thought as he remembered her words _"You fuck them and you dump them"._ Draco knew it was true, he was never the romantic type and the girls at Hogwarts never gave him any reason to be one. They were easy all of them. _"Except one..."_ he thought bitterly walking into the potion classroom. Sitting down next to the frustrating girl he vowed that he would seduce Kateryna Dolohov even if it was the last thing he did..._"I do enjoy a good chasse"_ he thought with a smile on his face.

"Snape definitely gives an unfair advantage to his own house!" Kateryna exclaimed as they left the classroom.

"Now that I'm a Slytherin he actually lets me answer the questions! Ugh it's so unfair!"

Daphne laughed whole-heartedly at her new friend's frustration

"Well at least you get to take advantage of his favoritism now! I believe you do love answering questions... " She pointed out mischievously.

"That's true, I guess Slytherin might earn a few extra points now that he lets me answer any question I want"

"Ladies" Blaise greeted them, grabbing them both by the waist with a smirk "What a lucky man I am, the prettiest women in Slytherin are both in my arms. We're only missing Pansy"

Twisting his head around he spotted the brunette witch in a corner

"Pansy! Want to join my harem?"

"No thank you Blaise, I like to be the only women in my wizard's life!" she shouted back.

Both Kat and Daphne noticed the disappointed look on the young man's face.

-"Stop acting like a love sick puppy Blaise and have the balls to tell Pansy you like her!" Daphne whispered in her friend's ear.

-"It's not that easy Daph..."

Before she knew it, Kateryna was eating dinner in the Great Hall. Shifting rather uncomfortably in her seat, she looked around her at the numerous male stares.

"Guys?"

"Uh?" Theo asked shifting his focus from his plate full of food to the worried female sitting in front of him

"Why aren't you affected by the Veela gene?"

Draco laughed wholeheartedly

"Kat, not all men as are affected by Veelas in the same way. we are more immune to it than other men because we actually know you... Look at Potty and Weasel, neither of them is gawking at you either. Also, the Veela gene is often less effective on people that are already emotionally committed for example Greg over there..." The whole table burst out laughing, it seemed that Greg's infatuation with Millie was one of the group's favorite jokes

"That doesn't mean I don't find you utterly delightful" he said winking at her

She giggled at what she assumed to be an usual Malfoy joke, not noticing the questioning look Blaise was shooting his best mate.

"Don't be silly Draco"

His expression darkened

"Malfoys are never silly...the Malfoys are..."

Sensing the beginning of a rant Pansy cut him off

"Yeah we know, one of the purest and most honorable families in England and in the Wizarding World!"

The whole table laughed at Pansy's perfect imitation of the blonde boy.

"You're not funny,you know that right? " Draco scoffed, annoyed by his friends' dismissive behavior.

"I find myself quite hilarious actually..." Pansy's voice trailed off as she spotted Cormac McLaggen strutting towards their table. Kat couldn't contain a whimper that earned her an evil smirk from Theo that mouthed. "Sucks for you"

"What do you want Gryffindork?" Draco asked abruptly as the obnoxious boy approached the table.

"From you? Nothing. From Dolohov though..." He paused "How are you sweetheart? You were quite feisty the other night? Don't worry that's how I like my women..." He tilting her chin up with a calloused hand.

"McLaggen you're hurting me...Stop now or I swear..."

"What are you going to do sweetie, glare at me to death? You don't even have your wand..."

"But I do" Cepheus said "And I won't hesitate to use the cruciatus on you if you don't let go of her now!"

"You're all talk but no action Dolohov" Cormac sneered "I on the other hand..." he said while proceeding to groping an increasingly furious Kateryna"

"Let go of me!" she screamed. A second later she was free while Cormac was on the ground clutching his nose. Draco pulled her towards in his arms as his knuckle already started swelling.

"Nobody touches my witch" He said in a loud voice. No one knew if he was addressing McLaggen or the whole male population of Hogwarts. Kat did not even have the strenght to process what was happening, her legs where still shaking. To everyone else in the Great Hall it was very clear Draco Malfoy just claimed the pretty witch and nothing and no one would get in his way.

**AN: And that's a wrap for chapter three, it's currently being review by my beta but I hat not posting anything so I decided to still post this! Hope you liked it! As always review please, tell me what you like/dislike what you want to see next constructive criticisms are always appreciated :) Sooo I didn't start writing chapter 4 yet but I'm gonna start it tonight, it might me take a while longer to update tough because I have so much stuff happening right now! Anyways what did you think of the argument between kat and harry? It was a real struggle to write! REVIEW guys ! :)**


	4. Chapter 4

**AN: Yeaaaaaah here's another chapter for you guys! I hope you like it! So I just came back from an AWFUL swim meet and decided to write this because I'm just THAT nice :p As always please review and tell me about what you like/dislike... I am gonna start working on chapter 5 tonight and hopefully the back to school night will be in that chapter but I can't guarantee anything :) REVIEWS make me happy :)**

**Hope you like it! By the way your reviews are like the sweetest ever and are SO helpfull! I love you guys :) Sorry guys I got distracted and uploaded chapter 3 again :s**

Everything felt blurry as Kat was walked out of the Great Hall by a furious Draco. Once the inquisitive stares were gone she seemed to regain her senses as she quirked an eyebrow at Draco

"Your witch?"

He simply smirked in response

"Is that how you thank me for saving you from that pig?"

"Draco you know very well that I'm extremely grateful for your help but I am nobody's witch is that clear"

Bruskly Draco pushed her against a wall, pinning her arms above her head. His mouth dangerously close to hers as he whispered

"You don't get a say in this sweetheart

Kat could barely breathe, Draco's proximity was intoxicating. She could smell the musk scent of his cologne and see the flecks of blue in his stormy grey eyes. Panting slightly she looked eyes with him losing herself in the silverpools

"I think you rather like being MY witch" he noted cockily, leaning even clo

His obnoxious attitude broke the enchantment

"YOU ARE A PRICK MALFOY! I'LL NEVER EVER BE YOUR ANYTHING!" She screamed pushing him away with all of her strength

"How are you any better than McLaggen?" She asked furious "I'd rather date him then ever have you lay a single finger on me!" With these last words she spun around and started leaving. Draco's hand firmly gripped her arm, spinning her around once again. With two finger her tilted her chin up. Black against Grey as they shared at each other. Before Kat knew it, his lips were on hers. It was a soft kiss, gentle, almost innocent. It lasted only a few seconds and when Draco broke away he whispered

"Be careful beautiful, you shouldn't challenge me like that. You're already mine, you just don't know it yet..."

"What is that supposed to..." But Draco was already gone "...mean" she finished more to herself than to anyone else.

Lucius Malfoy looked over his son's letter one more. A satisfied smile on his face.

Father,

I found a suitable bride and I will accept no other. Let Dolohov know.

Draco

The Malfoy patriarch snickered at the short message. The Dolohov girl will be perfect, he thought while scribbling a quick message to his childhood friend.

Antonin...

...I have been informed by my son that he wishes to court your daughter. I wish to let you know that I would be thrilled at the prospect of uniting the Malfoy and Dolohov families. I assume you would be favorable to the match too as no man would compare to my son in wealth or power.

Lucius

Antonin Dolohov was thrilled. Kateryna turned out to be an extremely useful pawn in the pureblood power struggle. Her beauty and breeding guaranteed a suitable match for her but the Malfoys were something different. Nothing could bring me closer to the Dark Lord he thought. Since the end of the year, Lucius had managed to get himself back into an influential position in Voldemort's inner circle and every pureblood family hoped for a wedding between Draco and their daughter. Kateryna is one lucky girl he thought while he watched the two owls fly out of the window, one headed to Malfoy Manor the other to the Slytherin Girls Dormitory.

Draco was having very vivid dreams involving a feisty brunette when he was woken up by his dorm door slamming open.

"Draco Fucking Malfoy! Did you do this!" a very disheveled Kateryna screeched at him holding up a piece of parchment.

"What is it sweetheart?" he mumbled, not very impressed by her outburst as he sank his head back in his pillow.

"Oh I don't know you tell me! My father just ordered, and I'm insisting on that part, me to marry your obnoxious ass!"

Draco's head popped up and he couldn't keep a grin of his face.

"He did?"

"Yes he did and seeing your expression you obviously have something to do with it !"

"What if I did?"

"I will never marry you Draco! No matter how much you try, even if my father drags me to the altar by the hair I will never be your wife"

Draco was starting to get annoyed by her rejection. Grabbing her hand he led her out the door for what he expected to be an epic screaming match.

"Now you listen to me love, you should be jumping up and down in excitement about marrying me. Would you rather get some bizarre, inbred, anonymous Dark Lord follower as your husband? I don't think so... Whatever you say won't change the fact that at a point or another and no matter how much he cares about you, your dad will marry you off to the highest bidder."

"So what do you expect me to do, stand by and do nothing? Be a good submissive little wife? Because that is not going to happen Draco! I didn't go all this way and work my arse off just so that I can be the next living incubator for your obnoxious spawn!" Tears were streaming down her cheeks as she leaned on the wall for support. Draco realized that the girl was having a breakdown and that it would be better to comfort her. Snaking his arm around her waist he pulled her close to him, stroking her hair gently. She tried to struggle for a while but obviously didn't have the strength to resist.

"Hey Kat it's ok. I know you're not used to this whole arranged marriage thing but I promise it's going to be alright...we don't have to get married for a while." he whispered into her ear before adding mischievously "anyways it's not like you're not attracted to me"

She lifted her head to look at him attempting a glare but amusement was showing in her wet eyes

"I-Am-Not-Attracted-To-You-Ferret-Boy!" Kat exclaimed but she didn't even convince herself.

Draco just smiled, a genuine smile.

"Goodnight then Kateryna" he whispered hugging her tightly, his nose in the crook of her neck.

Stealing a quick kiss from her he walked away a satisfied smirk on his face

"Don't say you're not attracted to me sweetheart! You're a terrible liar"

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When Kat walked back into the dorm, she found four very curious girls staring at her.

"What happened ?" Pansy asked curiously as soon as the door was shut.

Kateryna couldn't hold back her fear and anger anymore as she collapsed to the floor sobbing loudly. In a split second Daphne was next to her smoothing her hair and patting her back as Kat completely let go.

"I didn't ask for any of this" she sobbed "I never wanted to be a pureblood, I was fine with being Hermione Granger the mudblood that Draco hated!"

"It's about him isn't it?" Tracey asked sitting next to her on the cold floor.

"My dad is forcing me to marry him..." she whispered

"And you feel like you're betraying everything you use to stand for" Millicent added surprising everyone with her insight.

"I know I'll have to pick a side at some point, that I can't stand in the middle but I don't want to guys. I'm not a bad person I don't want to torture people, I don't want to hurt anyone!"

Pansy rose from the bed

"And you think we want to? I don't particularly wish to take the mark, all I want is to make my family proud and keep the people I care about safe ! We didn't get to choose which side we're on, I was born to serve the dark lord do you think that's something I enjoy? Sure my parents have always taught me that muggles and muggleborns are filthy and I believe them! But that doesn't mean I want to exterminate them!" The young girl shouted.

"Pansy" Daphne whispered "I think Kat gets it!"

"NO! She needs to understand that I'm scared too, we all have reasons to be! There's a fucking war going on out there! How do you think I felt when Blaise took the mark? Everytime he goes on a mission I know he might not come back? I've been in love with that idiot for longer than I can remember you know? I don't want him to die just because he had the bad luck to be born in a family that leaves him no choice regarding his loyalties!" Gasping for breath Pansy sunk to the ground next to her friends desperately attempting to hide her tears.

"I'm sorry Pansy" Kat whispered "It's just that I am scared and confused I don't know who I should side with and I have the impression the choice is being made for me...I want to be free, free to pick sides and fight for what I believe in, free to fall in love and marry when I choose to and now my family is taking all of that away from me."

Tracey moved closer to Kat and squeezed her friends hand.

"Hey Kat, look at me" she forced her friend to look up by grabbing her chin gently and tilting it until their eyes met.

"Everything is going to be alright...As you said, the choice is being made for you, you better make the best out of it because no matter what you do your father and Lucius Malfoy will drag you to that altar and force you to say your vows with a wand poking your ribs if you ever try to resist. I know that you care about your family, I see it in your eyes when you look at Ceph. You never say it but you're glad to have him in your life. I know it's a big sacrifice but if you aren't doing it for yourself do it for us, I don't want to turn into one of them. I saw Deatheater gatherings I never want to be as cold and heartless as most of them are but I'm afraid that without someone like you to keep that little bit of good in us Ceph, Draco, Blaise, Theo... they'll become just like the others, genuinely cruel. The word isn't all black or white you're smart enough to know that...so please for our sake don't give up on us and don't give up on them.

Wordlessly, Kat reached for the girl and hugged her tightly. Soon Daphne, Pansy and Millie joined in. They stayed like that for a long time hoping that one day everything would be right again.

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"What is that thing?"

Millicent asked shaking the small plastic rectangle she found on the top of Kat's trunk. It had been a few days since the 'incident' ,as they started calling it, and on this bright Saturday morning the girls were in an especially good mood as they started decorating their dorm room. Something they hadn't been able to do since their arrival.

"That, Millie, is an mp3 player, it's a muggle device"

"And what does it do?" Millie asked as she examined it closely.

"It plays music..."

"How? It's just a piece of weird material"

Kat giggled lightly as she pressed on a button, suddenly the first notes of "Highway to Hell" filled the room. In surprise Millie dropped the device making it change songs "Wannabe" by the Spice Girls started playing.

'Hey this is catchy!" Pansy exclaimed. "How do you work this crap ?"she asked clicking on random buttons trying to figure it out.

"Who knew muggles could invent such a cool thing!" Tracey said. Kat shot her a glare

"Don't look at me like Kat tell me what muggles have invented that wizards don't have?"

"Apart from mp3 players? So many things"

"Do tell." Daphne said. Sounding genuinely interested in what her friend had to say.

"Well we have toasters!"

"What a weird name! What does it do?"

"It allows you to grill your toasts really fast, you just press on a button, wait for a while and your bread pops out perfectly ready!

"Wow" Millie whispered "That's pretty amazing but I can get an house elf to do that for me, or cast a spell"

"That's true" Kat mumbled, trying to think of something else "Oh I bet you nothing beats a TV"

"What's a teevee?" Daphne asked excitedly

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Draco,Blaise and Theo were walking towards their dorm room when they heard very loud music playing they looked at each other inquisitively and decided to follow the noise. They quickly found themselves in front of the girl's door. Blaise hesitated, his hand on the doorknob.

"For Merlin's sake Zambini open the door!" Draco huffed. blaise obliged.

The scene in front of them had their mouth hanging open. The girls were dancing around the room, repeating the same movements and singing loudly.

"One two three four... Heyyy Macarena!" Kat voice's said. As they switched positions. They seemed to be having the time of their life and hadn't noticed them yet.

"Oh my god! The guys are here!" Pansy squealed. With a flick of her wand Daphne stopped the music.

"Hey guys wanna join?"

Theo chuckled

"I don't believe Draco wiggling his ass would be half as delightful as you doing it"

Daphne shot him a smile, blushing slightly.

"What on earth was that?" Draco ask

"It's the Macarena" Kateryna said

"The Maca-what?"

"The Macarena, it's a muggle song!" Millie informed him "It's fun, there's a whole dance that goes with it"

Draco really wanted to make some witty comment about muggles but he would rather not anger his hot-headed betrothed.

"Umm okay...Wanna go to Hogsmeade?"

Kateryna walk towards him and smiled sweetly

"Oh but of course Draco dear, we would be so happy to go to Hogsmeade with you guys as long as we can do some shopping!" Her whole demeanor heavy with sarcasm

Yup! definitely still mad, Draco thought. He decided to play along, knowing full well that he didn't have the energy to confront her.

"Perfect! We'll get you girls in an hours! I'll go tell Vince and Greg!"

As he walked out he thought he heard Pansy scold Kat

"I thought you agreed to be nicer to him!"

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Kateryna was looking at herself in the mirror

'Why do I have to be so dressed up again?" She asked Tracey that was currently fussing about her hair.

"Because you agreed to embrace your new family and as a young pureblood girl you need to look your best for your fiance! I thought we talked about it before, you want your brother to see you're doing efforts so that he can report it to your dad..."

She was currently wearing a pretty,curve hugging pale pink dress and high heeled tan sandals. Her a small section of her chestnut hair braided and pinned back on one side while the rest was styled in thick barrel curls. Her makeup had been carefully applied by a psychotic Tracey while Pansy tugged at her hair and Daphne picked out her outfit.

"What about you guys? I mean why do I have to be the victim of your makeup frenzy?"

"We don't have a betrothed to impress sweetheart!"

"I seriously don't want to impress anyone..." She mumbled

Daphne looked at her thoughtfully

"You really aren't going to make it easy for him are you?" she said with a smile.

"Obviously not, if he thinks I'm going to be some submissive wife he's very wrong!"

"We've already had this conversation Kat! Isn't it better to accept the situation rather than be forced into it later?

"I guess..."

"Then you're going to get out there, look your very best. Drive Draco insane, as usual and have a good time! I want you to stop brooding over this whole thing and live a little!"

While Daphne continued lecturing her, Pansy finished getting ready. Ten minutes later they were all set. Tracey skipped happily down the stairs eager to see Cepheus...

"If that's what being in love does to you I'm glad I don't have a crush on anyone..." Millie mumbled while Kat grunted in approval.

"Seriously Millie! Everyone knows you and Greg have a serious crush on each other, stop denying it!" Daphne exclaimed.

"That's not true! I don't like Greg! He does!"

All three girls shot her a knowing look to which she responded by an annoyed huff.

"Girls! c'mon" Tracey screamed from the bottom of the stairs

"We're coming Tracey!"

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"Kateryna" Draco's voice was low and seductive "You look stunning"

To her annoyance Kat couldn't help but blush. Grabbing her hand, the young hand kissed her knuckles.

"You look good too Draco..." she whispered remembering Daphne's words "Be nice Kat!"

Draco smirked at her, leaning close to her he murmured a few words in her ear

"I see you took the girls' advice"

His comment annoyed her greatly as she glared at him huffing.

"Don't get started Malfoy!"

"Aww, we're back to a last name basis? That really hurts me Kateryna" he said, pouting childishly

"Guys can you stop arguing for two seconds?" Vince asked exasperated

"Yeah you sound like an old married couple!" Daphne said shooting Kat an evil smirk

In silence they started making their way to Hogsmeade. Once at the village, the girls started babbling excitedly about what stores to visit and where to go first

"Let's go to Madam Puddifoot's!" Pansy squeaked "They have the best scones!"

"No!" The boys all shouted, terrorized looks stamped on their face.

"I went in there once! Once!" Draco said "I thought I was going to die from a pink overdose!"

"Yeah! That place is an attack on my manliness"Theo said.

"I'd rather go to the Hog's head than ever go back in that pink hell!" Draco continued.

"Fine! We got it guys! Let's just go to the three broomsticks!" Kat exclaimed loudly.

Everyone agreed with the suggestion since the guys refused to set foot anywhere near the cozy tea shop. As they all walked towards the pub, Kat started observing her new friends. There were definitely some well defined couples: Pansy and Blaise had a thing going on, Theo would shoot glances at Daphne once in a while, Tracey and Daphne flirted shamelessly, finally Greg and Millie pretended not to like each other but were betrayed by their occasional glance at each other. Kat smiled wondering who Vince liked, he was the only one that never flirted or made any comments suggesting he had a love interest. Deep in her thoughts, she didn't immediately feel Draco's hand pressing on the small of her back. When she realized that Draco's warm hand was on her she turned towards him narrowing her eyes. He smirked in response. Deciding to give in , Kat slid her own hand around Draco's waist. A satisfied smile graced her face when Draco's eyebrows shot up in surprise.

"Serves you right Malfoy" she whispered

He tightened his grip around her in response. Grinning at Blaise that was giving him a very obvious thumbs up.

"Could Blaise be any less subtle?" Kat asked stifling a giggle

Draco laughed, a surprisingly warm laugh.

"He's never been the subtle type"

"Why doesn't that surprise me..." She giggled once again "Kat stop this right now!" she thought.

They arrived at the three broomsticks and sat down in the back of the room. The guys went to get butterbeers while the girls sat down and started chatting animatedly.

"Oh my god! You and Draco..." Pansy said in a conspiratory tone, leaning forward.

"Pans can we not go there or I swear I'll start talking about your dysfunctional relationship with a certain Blaise Zabini"

That shut Pansy up for two minutes before she started talking again

"So did you think about a dress for the Back to school dance? It's coming up!"

"Oh my god, Yes!" Daphne exclaimed joining the conversation "I was thinking maybe something red or dark blue..."

"Do you think Theo is going to ask you?" Tracey asked cocking her head

Daphne started chewing on her lips nervously

"I don't know...I think he likes me but I'm not sure"

"You and him would be a good couple" Kat said, hoping that Daphne would see just how much the dark haired boy fancied her friend.

"He's not like all the other guys..." Daphne said "I never see him staring at these..." she said pointing at her ample breasts.

By the time the guys got back, they were engrossed on a discussion on the perfect bra size.

"Ah that's the kind of conversation I like!" Blaise said, handing Pansy a butterbeer.

"Yeah I agree mate!" Draco answered slumping down next to Kat and putting a possessive arm around her shoulder.

"Remove the arm now Draco!" She hissed. Instead he stole a kiss from her earning a few gasps from the girls and wolf whistles from the guys as well as an "Hey that's my baby sister!" from Cepheus.

"You...you are infuriating!" she spluttered feeling her face turned pink.

"You sure sweetheart? Because this lovely shade of red tells another story" He said while pinching her cheek.

Never was Kat more grateful for the entry of Harry and Ron in the pub as it provided an appreciated distraction.

"If the two bumbling idiots dare to look at you the wrong way I'll hex their face off" Cepheus groaned. Draco nodded in approval, turning back to her he said

"Just ignore them Ok?"

She smiled weakly at him

"I'll try"

"So Daphne was telling me about a very peculiar device called an mp3" Theo said, diverting the conversation to a less painful topic.

"Oh yeah! Do you want to see it?" She asked, reaching for her bag

"I'd love too!" Theo answered.

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"She will take the mark Antonin. There is no arguing on that point. I will not force her to fight but I want her allegiance to be made public. Se will not take parts in the battles since her duty is to bear children but seeing the mark on her skin will destroy Potter and make him careless...we'll get him then."

"Yes my lord but..."

"Are you arguing with me Antonin?"

"No my lord, I would never dare too"

"Good. Let your daughter know as soon as possible"

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It had been a pleasant afternoon, filled with giggles and lively conversations. After their stop at the Three Broomsticks. The girls had gone dress hunting until Daphne had disappeared. They had searched for her everywhere, finally finding her in a dark alley, making out with Theo. The new couple had been taunted for hours, the comments ranging from "Finally you two realized you were made for each other!" to "And my fiance won't even let me peck her on the cheek" the last comment, of course, came from Draco and had earned him a very furious glare from Kat.

They were walking towards the castle happily. Theo and Daphne a little bit behind, walking hand in hand and stopping every two seconds to suck each other's face. As they walked inside the entrance hall, Greg, Vince, Blaise and Pansy ran off to the common room while the couple ran off to a dark corner leaving Kat and Draco in the hall."Why can't we do that ?" Draco pouted

"Because I am not your girlfriend." Kat sighed "I'm really not interested in making out with you..."

With a wicked smirk Draco pushed her against a wall, placing his hand on either sides of her head he leaned in very close to her. His hot breath tickling her ear.

"Are you sure?"

She couldn't breathe, he was way too close. His had chest was pressing against her heaving breasts while his lips were pressed against her earlobe. Unable to utter a single word, Kat choose to lose herself in his grey orbs

"That's what I thought..." He chuckled, leaning closer and closer.

Once his lips touched his, Kateryna lost all control. Grabbing the front of his shirt she lost herself in the kiss. It was desperate, passionate. Her teeth pulled on his lips while he tangled his hand in her hair. Lifting her legs she wrapped them around his waist. Parting her lips she let his tongue

slip into her mouth. They kissed for what seemed like hours until, breathless, they broke away.

"I don't like you, not at all" Kateryna whispered

He simply smiled

"Yeah keep telling yourself that..."

Leaning in again, he placed a chaste kiss on her lips. Tucking a strand of hair behind her ear, he let his thumb rest on her cheek. Gently stroking it.

"It's okay to be confused you know"

She frowned

"I'm not confused"

"Really?"

"Really"

"Then why do you kiss me away everytime I want to do this" he said kissing her neck. "And that" his lips traced butterfly kisses on her jaw, tracing its outline. "And this" He repeated again kissing her full on the mouth once more.

"I guess I just never imagined I'd be kissing ferret boy..." she mumbled

"Hey! I resent that!"

She giggled

"I still don't like you..."

This time he merely smirked

"I'll take that as a challenge sweetheart"

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Walking back in her dormroom Kat felt lightheaded and there was a definite spring to her step. She opened the door to her room and smiled at the view. Her friends were jumping around the room, dancing and singing. Pansy had a bottle of firewhiskey in her hands and was attempting to do a cartwheel on her bed.

"Hey Kit-Kat!" Daphne giggled

"Wow, what's happening here?"

"We're having a party!" said an obviously tipsy Trace

"Yup" Millicent agreed, popping her 'p. "We're celebrating Daphne finally getting her happily ever after"'

"Can I join in on the celebration?"

"Obviously! You're one of us now..."

"Yeah I guess I am" Kat whispered her hands going to her lips while a smile spread across her face.

A tapping on the window made the girls jump in surprise.

"I'll get it" Millie mumbled

Kat flopped onto the bed. Taking a sip from the bottle of firewhiskey Daphne handed her.

"You know if a few months ago somebody told me that I'd be drinking and partying in the Slytherin dorms I would have whacked them with a book for even thinking about it"

All the girls giggled but they were quickly silenced by a worried Millie

"Kat?"

"Huh?"

"It's for you"

Millie handed her a black envelope sealed with a dark mark shaped silver wax. Kat's eyes widened as she realized who the letter came from. Frowning she opened it and started reading. The paper dropped from her hands as her mouth opened in shock. Everything went black.

**AN: REVIEW and tell me how you liked my attempt at a cliff hanger! You got some nice Draco/Kat action in there! Hope you like it, it's the first time I tried writing something like this sooo it might not be my best. I really like this chapter because I mostly developed the interaction between Drakie-Poo and Kateryna! Hope you liked it. I hope I didn't upset anyone with the betrothal but it definitely seems like something bigoted pureblood would do. Don't be upset with the fact that Kat seems to come to term with it rather quickly, I mean she is in denial right now but she IS attracted to him... Anyways I hope to finish chapter 5 by Wednesday...**

**What did you think of Theo and Daph FINALLY being together!? REVIEW PLEASE ! I love you guys (HEHE I'm probably soooo annoying :p )**


	5. Chapter 5

**AN: OH MY GOD! I'm finally done! I had so much going on this weekend, a swim meet and SAT practice and a speech to prepare for one of my classes. Oh well it's done now! Anyways I'm soooo excited for this chapter, you'll understand why at the end!**

**I literally wrote everything today because I just couldn't find the time ti write any other day! Oh well...Hope you like it! **

**Please review guys! They make me happy! Also if some of you don't read the AN's at the END of the chapters I sometimes ask questions that you can answer in the reviews such as "What did you think of Theo and Daphne getting together..."**

**Enjoy this! (I'll probably post chapter 6 this Friday night :p )**

_" No!No! Nooooo !"_

Kat sunk to her knees sobbing uncontrollably, in a second the girls were around her.

"Hey, Kat It's ok...What happened?" Daphne whispered

"No. This is not happening" Big tears were rolling down her cheeks and no matter how furiously she wiped them away, new ones would dampen her cheeks in a matter of seconds.

Kateryna couldn't articulated a normal sentence anymore as she continued repeating the same thing over and over again.

"No...not happening...no...please...no!"

Millie furrowed her brow and picked up the letter that was laying on the floor. Her eyes widened as she read the message.

"Guys..." Millie interjected, holding Kat's letter in her hand "Get Draco. Now. We can't help her but he will"

"What is it?" Pansy asked her voice barely a murmur as she furrowed her brows

Millie handed her the letter silently while hastily making her way out the door to get Draco. Pansy's hand flew to her mouth as she dropped the letter to the ground.

_Kateryna,_

_You are to receive the mark on the next full moon_

_You will not question me on this. I will explain everything in detail as soon as possible._

_Please do not make this harder than it has to be._

Kat stared at her shocked friends with wet,sad eyes.

"I'm scared. I have no choice and I know it..." Hiding her face in her hand she whispered "What am I going to do?"

"This is impossible" Pansy kept repeating

"I don't understand, he never forces girls. He doesn't really want women in his ranks, I mean apart from Bellatrix." Daphne said "Why is he forcing Kat to take the mark I mean..."

She was cut off by Draco's deep voice

"Kateryna."

Kat turned her face towards him, tears streaming down her cheeks.

"Draco..." Her voice was weak, defeated.

"Draco you have to help her!" Tracey said handing him the letter. As Draco read his brows furrowed and a scowl darkened his handsome features.

"We thought that given your...experience you might be able to help her.."

He gave a sharp nod

"Get out girls, I need to talk with Kat...alone."

Without a protest, the girls walked out sending sorry glances at their friend. Once the door was shut, Draco took kat in his arms and carried her bridal style towards the bed, she didn't even respond to his touch. The shock made her numb and she felt unable to process anything.

Putting her down on the bed, Draco sat down next to her.

"Hey Kat, it's all going to be alright. I promise"

His words shook her out of her stupor as she sat up holding his gaze.

"No it isn't going to be alright Draco" He voice was weak but her gaze as steely "I tried to blend in, tried to accept my family even with all its faults but this I can't deal with! Death eaters, they're evil! I would love to ignore it but it's the plain truth, they kill, torture and rape every chance they get! I tried to ignore it because they're my family now, you're my family now. All of you. But I don't want to serve him, I don't want to grovel at his feet like our parents do and I know you feel the same way! I know you don't want to talk about it but he forced you to try and kill Dumbledore for god's sake"

"I didn't..."

"I know Draco! I know you didn't do it but that's not my point, the point is that they forced you, a seventeen year old to try and take on one of the most powerful wizard alive as payback for your father's mistakes!"

He looked at her silently, putting his arms around her he hugged. Kissing the top of her head he whispered reassuring words his face buried in her hair.

"I'll keep you safe Kat, these bastards will never hurt you. I promise you."

He felt tears dampen his shirt as Kat lifted her face from his chest, her eyes seemed to see right through him.

"I'm scared, I don't want to become like them...I don't want you, or Ceph or Blaise or Theo,even Vince and Greg do become like them...You're a good person Draco, deep deep down I know you're not half the prick you pretend to be"

He chuckled at her last words

"I have it you know, the mark, and I'm still myself. I think you know I never really gave a shit about exterminating muggles or anything like that..."

"But in second year you wanted me to be killed by the Basilisk"

"I don't think I hated you because I thought you were a muggle-born. I was jealous, of the attention, of your good grades... Your background was a good excuse to hate you and my father always encouraged it...You made me see that muggles aren't as stupid as I thought they were, I mean a washing mash-in would be wonderful for the house elfs..."

She giggled at how clueless he sounded

"That's not how you say it..." She said her eyes twinkling mischievously

But Draco didn't care, all that mattered was that he brought a smile back to her face.

"Try to get some sleep okay?"

"Stay" She asked, looking desperate as tears started forming in her eyes once again 'I don't know what's up with me but I'm just so scared. I'm such an idiot, I faced way worse but this, this..." Her voice trailed off as she started sobbing once again.

"Shh, it's fine" Draco said. Laying down on her bed he pulled her to him, her head on his chest.

"Draco..." She whispered after a while

"Yes?"

"Thank you"

"For what sweetheart?"

"For everything" She whispered snuggling her head in his chest.

When the girls walked back in after an hour they were pleased to see Draco and Kat sleeping peacefully. His hand pressed on her back while she clutched his shirt tightly. They were breathing evenly and both had a content smile on their face.

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When Draco woke up the following morning his first thought was "Shit!" as he realized that his hand had slipped under Kat's shirt and was way too close to her breast. If it were any other girl, Drake wouldn't have minded but he knew very well that Kat would skin him alive if she woke up with his hand on her boob. Careful not to wake her up, he carefully slipped his arm out of the shirt, Placing it on her hip instead and pulling her close. Breathing her scent in Draco thought he would be the luckiest men alive if he managed to marry that girl. This witch is mine he thought, I will wake up next to her every morning and I will fall asleep next to her at night. Kat was perfect, he thought, her petite body seemed to have been made for his arms to hold her. Sighing Draco wondered if the girl would ever truly accept him or only give in to him during moments of weakness. Gods knows she doesn't have enough of these. He knew she was physically attracted to him but it wasn't enough, Kat was way too smart to fall for looks and way too strong to give in to him. Draco's thoughts were interrupted by Kat's body stirring against his.

"Hey there..." Kat's sweet voice broke the silence of the room.

"You're awake"

She smirked at him, at new habit of hers that she probably picked up from being surrounded by Slytherin all the time.

"Are you sure Draco? I thought I was asleep, my, my that's valuable information you've got there"

He glared at her

"Someone's cheeky this morning"

"And someone's a kill-joy! C'mon let's go to breakfast" She said getting up and running into the bathroom. He heard running water and Kat swearing softly a couple a few minutes she walked out of it once again looking positively gorgeous. Well she always does... Draco thought, instantly mentally slapping himself for being so mushy.

Kat's hair was pulled up in a messy bun, loose strands framing her face. She was wearing a figure hugging black dress, sheer black tights and a pair of lace up high-heeled suede booties as well as a lavish fur lined black cloak, it was starting to get cold in scotland even though it was barely September. Draco was never one to really pay attention to clothes or makeup but a lot had changed since the half-veela witch had appeared in his life.

"Wow" Draco whispered to himself as he followed a skipping Kat out of the dorm.

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Kat wasn't as happy as she seemed to be, infact she was terrified. However, yesterday night while laying snuggled in Draco's arms she realized that everything wasn't bad, that Draco would be a better husband than some unknown death eater and that it was better to be trusted by Voldemort then to be considered a threat. Think about it Kat, she thought, you'll be able to gather information from the inside and bring it to Dumbledore and the Order if the people you care about are threatened. She knew she would never do such a thing, for some strange reason she had developed a certain loyalty to her father and didn't want to lose him the Order won't want me anymore she thought sadly as she remembered her old friends' rejection. After examining every aspect of the problem, Kat had deemed that the best solution was to apply Daphne and Pansy's advice "Go with the flow...".

Deciding to stick by that rule, she chose to ignore the fluttery feeling that started to develop every time she saw Draco and happily made her way towards breakfast. It's crazy how an evening can change everything... she thought. Yesterday I would never have let Draco go anywhere near me and today I wake up with him sleeping in my bed! She smiled at the idea of Ron and Harry finding out about her and Draco spending the night in the same room.

"Speak of the Devil" she mumbled as she saw her two ex-best-friends walk towards her looking surprisingly worried.

"What do you want Potter?' Draco spat, adopting a protective stance and pushing Kat behind him. Exasperated she pushed his arm away.

"Drake I can deal with this... What do you want?"

"Drake?!" Ron exclaimed but was quickly stopped by Harry.

"Hermione... Hum Kateryna, whatever you want, we forgive you... We heard about you and Malfoy being engaged and all, we were such pigheads not seeing that Voldemort obviously imperiused you or something. I don't know what they have on you to force you to do this but we can fix it, I promise..."

Kat felt anger bubble up in her chest as she lashed out at the two boys.

"How weak do you think I am? Oh so you think that this isn't genuine? You think that I'm being forced into being friends with people that actually stand by me no matter what" Her gaze flickered to Draco as she said the last sentence "Yes I am probably going to marry Draco... So what? What is it to you? I mean when you saw me on the train crying or when I begged you to understand you didn't think something was wrong but surely now that the guy you don't like might marry me you actually see me as the victim? You know what, they're way worse things in my life right now then marrying Draco!"

Ron interrupted her rant

"Hermione come back to us, to me! You don't like the git, I don't know how they're forcing you to comply but I'll fix it. The Hermione I knew would never agree to this!"

Now Kat was positively furious

"I AM NOT HERMIONE GRANGER ANYMORE! I am Kateryna Cassiopeia Dolohov whether I like it or not and there's nothing anyone can do about it. Oh so I'm not the same sweet, compliant Hermione I used to be? Well guess what? I'm not the same person anymore and it's partially because of you so don't you dare blame it on my family!"

Harry looked positively shocked as he screamed back

"Your Family? Your Family is not a bunch of Death Eaters? What kind of family forces their kids to marry someone they don't like?"

His words struck a chord but Kat wasn't ready to show it.

"Don't you dare question my family, they might be a bunch of Death Eaters but they're all I have left and when it comes to marrying Draco..."

Turning towards the young men she pulled on his shirt and kissed him fully on the lips, passed the initial shock her responded enthusiastically, snaking his hands around her waist. Breaking away Kat smirked at a flabbergasted Ron and Harry trying to hide just how flustered the kiss had left her "I think that answers your question..." She said. Pulling a just as shocked Draco behind her, she entered the Great Hall.

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_"She kissed me She kissed me She kissed me! Sweet Salazar's underpants she kissed me!"_ Choruses of angels were singing in Draco's head as he gave himself a mental pat on the back.

When Kat had pulled him to her and crashed her lips onto hers he had been stunned, in a matter of seconds he had started moving his lips against hers and teasing her with his tongue. She tasted like mint, lemon and honey and he couldn't get enough of her. His hand went to her waist while she snaked hers around his neck. It was over soon, too soon and now she was dragging him into the Great Hall, completely stunned. Draco let the sweet feeling of victory overcome him as he intensly stared at a quickly blushing Kat , her lips swollen and hair ruffled.

"What?" she asked suddenly as she noticed him staring.

"That shut them up real well didn't it?" He said with a chuckle

"Don't get your hopes up Malfoy" She smirked at him "I won't be a blushing, adoring fiancee anytime soon."

"We'll see about that sweetheart" He answered with a grin

"I guess we will"

Draco didn't even have the time to mentally celebrate the fact that she didn't tell him to shut up since at that precise moment an owl dropped a roll of parchment in front of Kat.

"Please not again..." Kat whispered.

She noticed Draco's gaze flickering from the parchment to her face. Setting aside her plate of waffles she sighed and reached for the parchment.

_Kateryna,_

_I hope you had time to cool down since my last letter._

_The full moon is tomorrow. You will be expected at Malfoy Manor at sundown._

_Draco will escort you._

_Father_

She looked up at Draco and met his inquisitive gaze. Smiling she handed him the letter

"Here, I know you want to read it."

Taking the letters from her hands Draco started reading it, no expression showing on his face as he passed it back to her.

"I want to talk to you Kat."

"You're already doing it..." She answered cheekily.

"Seriously Kat" he couldn't contain half a smile at her smart-ass comment.

"What is it?"

"I know you're not happy about all of this"

She laughed dryly.

"That's the understatement of the century..."

Ignoring her snarky remark he continued

"I want to make it better...I want to make it work, you know between us. You don't want to marry me, I got it but why? You know that anyway you'll be married off at some point and you won't get a choice in the matter."

"Draco that's the issue" she said, violently stabbing her pancakes with her fork "I don't want people to make decisions for met. You're not the issue. I'm sure than more than half the girls at our school would be okay with marrying you."

"But's what you don't get Kat! I don't want some dumb bint I want you because you're kind and sweet and smart and too fucking clueless to realize that all I want to do is take you in a dark corner and snog until I can't breathe anymore."

She blushed furiously at his words

"I don't understand Draco"

"You don't need to understand everything, I like you and you're attracted to me what more can you ask for? At least give me a chance!"

"Draco it's not that easy, I want to have a real story to tell my kids not some sordid story about how my dad sold me to the highest bidder! I want to fall in love and take my time, I want my boyfriend to propose one day and get married when we choose too!"

Draco was getting really annoyed, Kat could see it. He banged his hand on the table making her jump slightly.

"Fuck this Kateryna. You're a pureblood and that's how we do it, once you figure your shit out come and tell me! One second you push me away, the next you kiss me. I can't spend my time hoping that you'll decide that this is worth a shot!"

With these last words he stormed off. Leaving Kat alone with her pancakes and her dark thoughts.

For the first time in his life, Ronald Weasley was willingly sifting through books in the library.

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"Harry, mate I don't know what they did to our Mione but I swear I'll undo it! Our Mione would never go off snogging Malfoy like this... We need to fix her!"

Harry agreed wholeheartedly with his friend

"I agree dude, how can she just dump us like that! I'm pretty sure it's some kind of Imperius curse or maybe a Confundus charm..."

"I think I have the solution though!"

"What do you reckon we should do?"

Holding up an obscure looking potion book, Ron opened it and started shuffling through it.

"Ah here!" He said pointing at a page

"A love potion?"

"Yeah but not any love potion mate! Amortentia is the best stuff ever once she is madly in love with me she'll understand how much Draco's a dick and she'll be back with us"

"I don't know mate, I mean Hermione was our friends and I don't know if this is the best way to get her back! She'll feel betrayed once the effects wear off"

Ron understood that this was not the best way to go about this

"Yeah you're right dude! You go to breakfast! I'll put these away"

"Sure mate, see you downstairs"

Harry never saw Ron rip the page out of the potion textbook or put it in his bag.

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Daphne found Kat sitting in the common room clutching her head with her hands

"Hey what's up?"

"I need to talk to you Daphne...I'm so confused!"

The blonde girl sat next to Kat on the couch. Tucking her feet under her she took her friend's hand in hers.

"Tell me... What is it?"

"It's Draco. I don't know what to think anymore. I mean I've always known him as this total prick so at first it was easy to dismiss his attention as him being his usual flirting idiotic self. But now that we're betrothed and that he seems to be actually interested it gets harder and harder to reject him!"

"Why do you keep pushing him away? He's head over heels for you and you are betrothed anyways!"

She sighed

"I dont want to get hurt...Last year I had this massive crush on Ron and he started dating Lavender and it hurt me so much I thought I'll never be happy again. When Draco and I kiss it feel right but I..."

She was interrupted by Daphne's squeal

"Oh my god! You and Draco actually kissed"

Kat felt her cheeks heat up

"Yeah I mean, it was nothing...really..."

"Tell me everything! Why are you even questioning your relationship if you kissed!"

"I swear Daphne it wasn't such a big deal I mean the first time..."

"There were multiples!" Daphne's voice was impossibly high now

Kat was getting seriously exasperated

"Yes Daph! Now will you stop interrupting"

"Yes! Yes but tell me EVERYTHING!"

"The first time was when he dragged me out of the Great Hall after McLaggen groped me. Then he stole a stupid kiss from me after I learned about the marriage. The third time was after Hogsmeade and the last one was today, when I kissed him to get back at Ron and Harry..."

"OH MY GOD! Why didn't you tell me sooner?"

"You didn't ask..."

"Ohh Kat you're hopeless, I shouldn't even have to ask you! You should be talking about it 24/7 I mean everybody knows that Draco never chases after a girl! He must really really like you!"

"I don't know Daphne...I'm scared of everybody's reaction to the possibility of us being an item. You should have seen people staring now that they know we're engaged!"

Daphne hugged her friend before standing up she was confident that Kat's relationship with Draco would blossom into something beautiful but she didn't want to force it onto her friend.

"I think you should give him a chance..."

With these last words she left the common room. Abandoning a thoroughly confused Kateryna.

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"Draco?" Kat whispered walking into the boys dormitory. Hearing indistinct noises coming from one of the beds, walking towards it she opened the curtains around it

"Drac...oh!" Her exclamation died in her throat as the scene in front of her. Greg ws trusting into a panting Millie, both completely oblivious to their stunned friends.

Kat violently closed the curtains and ran out, not looking at where she was going. She slammed into a hard chest. Looking up she recognized Draco's steely orbs.

"I was looking for you" she breathed out

"Were you?' he said raising an eyebrow and leading her to the Boys Dorm door.

"Nuh Uh I wouldn't go in there if I were you." She said quickly feeling her whole face turn a pretty shade of red as she remembered the scene she just witnessed

"And why is that?" Draco asked amused at her obvious embarrassment.

"Well Greg was being...hum... entertained"

Draco burst out laughing

"Greg was getting some? Was it Millie? No don't answer that actually I really don't want a mental image of these two shagging..."

"I wanted to talk to you about this morning Draco..."

He smiled at her

"Yeah?"

"Could we go somewhere more private?" She asked

Draco waggled his eyebrows suggestively

"God Draco can you be a little bit less of a pig sometimes!" she huffed throwing her arms in the air in exasperation.

"C'mon sweetie, I know just the right place to go!"

Dragging her along he walked out of the common room towards an empty classroom.

Throwing the door open Draco ushered her inside shutting the door behind them.

"So what is it?"

"I don't know where to start really, there's so much I want to say..."

Sitting down on a chair, Draco leaned back smirking at her.

"Take your time sweetheart"

Gathering her energy Kat started talking.

"I don't like this Draco, this situation. I don't like having to take the mark because of my father's loyalty. I don't like the fact that everybody I know is fucking prejudiced against people I grew up respecting and loving. Yet, for some insane reason I found something I'm happy about in this situation and that something is you."

Draco was sporting a satisfied smile

"Oh get that knowing look of your face Draco I'm not done! So as I was saying, I like you. You're charming and handsome and funny...But there are some things I want to clarify. I know you were the one to initiate the marriage proposal."

Draco widened his eyes and did his best to compose his face in a mask of shock and betrayal but Kat saw right through it.

"Don't give me that innocent look Drake, Ceph told me about it. Anyways, what I was getting at is that I'm not yours, in fact, I am nobody's but myself! I want to be able to do whatever I want whenever I want! Don't ever expect me to stick by the rules because you'd be sorely mistaken."

"What are you getting at Kat, you're all if's and maybe's but I'm still not sure what you want."

Draco whispered rising from his chair and walking towards her.

"What do you want Kateryna?" He asked, his voice husky, leaning down, the tip of their noses almost touching.

She could feel her legs getting weaker and weaker as Draco started toying with a loose strand of her chestnut curls, twirling it around his finger lazily.

"What do you want?" He repeated, walking closer to her. She took a step backwards and found her back hitting cold stone. Draco was close, too close as he placed his hand on both sides of her body, blocking any exits.

"What do you want?" Draco repeated one last time.

Lifting her gaze to meet his grey orbs Kat felt her heart skip a beat.

"You, I want you..." she whispered.

**AN:And that's a wrap! Do you understand why I was so excited for this chapter now that you read it! Anyways what do you think about Millie and Greg being our second non-central pairing to get together (well sort off) Also who should I pair with Vince? I want to pair him with someone not from Slytherin! Any suggestions? Also I don't know if you noticed but Kat is slowly destroying prejudice in the Slytherin! Oh and also I promised a ball in this chapter but I totally miscalculated how much I was going to write in this chapter also next chapter is Death eater initiation son hopefully the ball will be in a few chapies!**

**Love you All and Review guys!**


	6. Chapter 6

**AN: Hey guys! So here's chapter 6. I's sorry, I'm slightly late on my update I wanted to update this yesterday but Oh well...You guys are the best seriously, I love you review so keep REVIEWING it really helps to shape the storry because I'll be honset I have no idea what the hell I'm doing...**

**Anyways Enjoy, I'm going to go take an SAT now ! REVIEW guys I love them :p**

He couldn't think straight anymore, he couldn't hear or see. The thumping of his heart felt way too strong. _What is happening to me?_Everything around her was a whirlwind of color..._I want you... I want you...you..._He pushed her against a wall, realizing just how tiny she was in his strong arms. Her gaze never left his as he leaned down pressing his mouth on hers in an almost bruising manner. Her lips parted and a soft moan escaped her mouth as he started trailing kisses down her jaw and her collar bone. Worshiping every in of skin, her skin. Coming back to her mouth he kissed her hard, she let the kiss deepen as he slipped his tongue into her mouth._I wish I could do this forever_. The erratic beat of his heart seemed to chant the same words over and over._Mine. Mine. Mine. Mine. _Her hands were in his hair and their chests were pressed against each other.

"Wow" Kat panted, parting from him

He chuckled at how disheveled she looked, her bun had come undone and her hair hung around her face curls going in every direction. Her lips were red and swollen from his kisses and her cheeks were tinged a bright pink.

"Wow indeed" he whispered back.

He noticed her eyes watering up. Slowly she collapsed to the ground and started sobbing.

"Kat, Kat! Hey, it's...hum...you're gonna be alright..." Draco wasn't used to crying girls, especially to girls crying after kissing him. Usually their reaction was the total opposite. In a matter of second his cocky attitude was gone and his voice was frantic. Kneeling next to the crying girl he attempted to comfort her, holding close

"Did...hum...I...do something wrong?" Stupid Draco! He thought as soon as the words left his mouth. Obviously it has to do with you. Sure that he had messed up in some way, Draco was very surprised by her answer.

-"It's not you Draco" she said with a weak smile "It's just that everything is way too confusing right now."

Draco sat down on the floor, reclining on the wall and pulling a sobbing Kat on his lap. She didn't resist.

"Do you want to talk about it?" he asked while holding her close.

"You don't have to do this you know..." she said "Be nice to me and try to understand"

"But I want to..." He said tilting her face upward so that she would at him

"I'm scared. You-know-who wants me to get the mark and I don't want to but I'll eventually have to pick a side and unfortunately and not given much of a choice. I'm dangerous Draco! People I care about will be targets if I don't comply! I can't have him hurt Ceph or the girls, even my Dad is a target...I don't want you to be at risk too!"

"Sweetheart I'm in danger anyways, being a Death Eaters is not all fun and games..."

She smiled at his understatement

"I know...that scares me even more..."

"You're taking this very well if you really want to know what I think. I mean I was the biggest arse to you for more than half your life and now you're my girlfriend"

"I learned with time that things are not always what they seem to be, actually..." she stopped, the meaning behind Draco's words hitting her.

"Your...your... girlfriend?"

Draco could barely suppress a grin

"Well if you want to get in the technicalities you're actually my fiance..."

She smacked his arm jokingly

"You know what I mean!"

"Well don't you want to be my girlfriend?"

"That's not the point Draco, the point is that you didn't even bother to ask! You mysoginistick prick"

"I'm asking right now..." He said completely oblivious to her simmering anger

"I'm not your possession! I'm a women in my own right and I swear to Merlin if you treat me like your usual bints I'll hex your balls off! No worse! I'll...I'll"

He shut her up with a kiss

Her little hand clutched his tightly as they walked across the manor's front lawn. The full moon was shining brightly above them.

"I'm glad you're here..." She whispered as they stopped at the door.

He squeezed her hand softly in reply. With a flourish of his wand he lowered the wards and led her in. They walked silently for a few very long minutes until they came to a stop in front of a majestic oak door. He felt Kateryna tense up next to him.

"Be strong" He whispered in her ear. She started shaking. Her big black eyes , even though determined, were starting to shine as she contained her tears.

"I wish you could come inside"

"Me too"

He planted a long lingering kiss on her mouth and chuckled when he saw her eyes widen in surprise as their face grew closer and their lips met.

"See you soon love" He whispered.

"Don't make promises you can't keep Drake" She whispered back.

She pushed the door open. Not knowing what to expect at all as she walked into the dimly lit room. In the middle, a throne like chair around which the Death eaters stood in a semi circle. Not seeing Voldemort anywhere, Kat took a few hesitant steps in.

"Well, well, well...Ms. Dolohov. Welcome to our little party" The high pitched voice of the Dark lord said from behind her.

Spinning around, Kat found herself face to face with the snake like features of the Dark Lord.

_Close your mind ! _She reminded herself as soon as their eyes met.

"Good Evening"

She replied, trying to sound confident even though she felt her knees weakening and her hands shaking in fear.

"How impolite of me, let me introduce you to everyone" the Dark Lord said, holding out his arm for her to take. Hesitantly, Kat put her small hand on his cold flesh. _Is that creature even human?_She wondered.

"Most people wonder the same thing..." the Dark Lord whispered to her.

_Crap!_Kat remembered._Close your mind!_

"My loyal Death Eaters! May I introduce you to our newest recruit! Kateryna Dolohov, she will take the mark tonight..."

A Voice suddenly interrupted the Dark Lord

"My lord how is the girl to be used in any missions? She was a friend of Potter!" he spat "and if the rumors are true, betrothed to the Malfoy heir! Doesn't that make her highly inadequate to serve in your ranks?" A man, at least that's what the hooded figure's voice indicated, asked.

"Are you questioning Lord Voldemort? Do you think that I cannot make my own decisions Selwyn?" The theart in the Dark Lord's voice was barely veiled.

"My lord I would never dare to..." The men tried to apologize, obviously dreading the punishment

"You already did.._.Crucio!_"

It took all of Kat's willpower not to run away from the horrific scene before her. She had already seen people under the Cruciatus curse but it didn't compare to the amount of pain the figure seemed to be in, judging by the screams. Her first reflex was for her hand to fly to her mouth in shock however, she knew that she had to look strong. Staring at a spot in front of her she tried to ignore the man's screams. She tried everything, from reciting the twelve uses of dragon blood in her head to invoking images of Draco, Daphne and the others. Nothing worked. Until finally, after what seemed like hours the screaming stopped.

"To answer your untimely question Selwyn, Ms. Dolohov will not be required to participate in mission unless I expressly request it."

Kat felt relief flood over her, she wouldn't have to hurt anyone or help the Dark Lord rise._I'm a token. _She understood. _I was light once and now that I seemingly pledge allegiance to the Dark , Voldemort will use me as a way to destabilize the Order..._The cold voice of the Dark Lord interrupted her train of thoughts.

"Well Kateryna" Her name felt wrong when coming out of his mouth, slimy, vile, dark "Let us begin the initiation."

Suddenly the door burst open._It's the Order! They're coming to save me!_Kateryna thought. She was wrong. Two Death eater entered the room, dragging a teenage girl behind them. The poor girl was kicking and screaming, her eyes glassy, empty pits of darkness...

"Please! No more! Please! Please! I don't know who you are, what did I do to you?!"

"Shut up you filth!" One of the two Death eaters screamed, kicking her to the ground

_She's a muggle..._Realization dawned on Kat._No! _Kat felt hopeless now, she already knew what would be asked of her.

"Kateryna...This is the rite of passage that will allow you to proceed to the initiation. Think of it as an aptitude test of sorts...I can't possibly have incapable death eaters in my rank." The Dark Lord's voice was flat, emotionless but she could feel the trepidation of the death eaters around her. She knew what was coming but choose to pay dumb

"My Lord, I fail to see what she is doing here..."

"Oh but Kateryna, they didn't call you the smartest witch of your age for nothing, did they? I'm disappointed, I thought you might figure it out..."

"Maybe I am not as smart as people think I am My Lord..." she answered, conscious she was playing a dangerous game.

"Oh but Kateryna I'm sure you know...Very well let Arcturus show you..."

One of the two Death eaters that had brought the girl in stepped forward

"_Crucio!_"

In a matter of seconds the girl was withering on the floor, thrashing and screaming.

"I can't do that..." She whispered

"Oh but I'm sure you can..." the Dark Lord answer "_You don't want anyone else to get hurt do you?" _ a cold voice whispered in her head. _Get out of my head! _Kateryna thought as loud as she could, hoping the Dark Lord wouldn't probe too far in her mind. _As you wish... _the voice answered. She knew exactly what he meant, if she failed Daphne, Ceph, Draco, Theo and the others would be in danger. On shaking feet she walked closer to the girl. Drawing her wand out she whispered "_Crucio"._Nothing happened. "_Crucio"_she whispered once more. Nothing again.

"You have to mean it girl!" A voice hissed from the crowd.

"Crucio!" she screamed, tears welling up in her eyes.

"Enough." the Dark Lord said "Bring him in"

Another Death Eater entered, Draco walking next to him. His eyes downcast, he wouldn't look her way.

"I think a little motivation might help you...Every time you fail at casting the Cruciatus on that muggle, I will cast one on Draco... I hope for his sake that you are a fast learner..." The Dark Lord's high pitched laugh filled the room and a couple Death Eaters walked in.

"Whenever you're ready" The Dark Lord said, twirling his wand in between his fingers.

"Crucio" Her voice was even, she wanted it to work now. But it didn't, the girls kept looking up at her with her blank gaze and she felt tears welling up in her eyes as the Dark Lord whispered a cruciatus of his own. Pointing its wand at Draco. Draco didn't scream, probably because he knew what was coming, soundlessly he sank to the floor. His mouth open in pain, his eyes rolling back.

"No!" Kat exclaimed. She couldn't look at it anymore. She needed it to work. Needed for the girl to suffer in order to save Draco. Her Draco. She remembered when Bella had explained the Cruciatus to Harry in the midst of the battle. She knew Bellatrix better now, knew she wasn't half as crazy as she seemed but the image of the lunatic witch at the Department of Mysteries was forever engraved in her memory. "_You need to mean them! You need to really want to cause pain ... to enjoy it ..." _ That's what she had said to Harry when he attempted to cast it on her.

"Crucio!" She shouted trying to enjoy giving pain, trying as hard as she could to want it. To want that poor girl withering on the floor.

"Tsk...Tsk...Tsk...Kateryna, that is not your best work. But it's getting better... Crucio!"

Once again Draco was on the floor, withering. Kateryna stared at him, she wanted to see every moment of it. Hoping it would trigger enough rage for her to perform the curse._Draco is suffering because of this girl, she deserves to be hurt!_She tried to tell herself. She felt the rage growing inside of her and when a scream escaped Draco's lips she knew it was the moment to act.

"Crucio!"

The girl collapsed to the floor as Kat felt a surge of power pass through her. It was probably the worst experience of her life, knowing that an innocent girl was withering on the floor because of her. Hastily, she lifted the curse.

"Well done Ms. Dolohov, isn't it crazy what a little motivation can do?" The Dark Lord said.

"Travers, Selwyn get rid of this filth while I deal with Kateryna's initiation."

A get of Green Light later, the girl was dead, laying eyes open on the stone floor. Grabbing the girl's lifeless body by the hair, one of the Death Eater proceeded to getting rid of it..

"Let us proceed..." The Dark Lord said "Kateryna, dear, come here..."

The death eaters chuckled at the Dark Lord's fakely sweet tone. Slowly she approached the throne like chair, shooting a panicked look at Draco that urged her on with a nod of his head.

"Ah young love..." Voldemort snarled "so...touching"

Not knowing what to answer she lowered her gaze, focusing it on a crack in the marble next to her foot.

"It's impolite not to look at your interlocutor Kateryna" The dark lord said, tilting her chin with the tip of his wand. Kat could feel her lower lip quiver in fear and her eyes sting from the tears held back for too long.

"Give me your arm" He said

Hesitantly, Kat gave him her forearm. Her gaze flickering from the wand he was holding to Draco's worried look.

Pressing the wood to her skin, the Dark Lord whispered.

"Morsmordre"

Pain, burning pain seemed to shoot through her whole arm, diffusing to the rest of her body. It was hot, burning like acid flowed through her veins. She wanted to scream but couldn't open her mouth,she couldn't see anything anymore. Everything went red then burning white. Finally after what seemed like hours of pain it stopped.

"It is done" the Dark Lord said and all the Death Eaters clapped for this new addition to their ranks.

They were walking silently towards the Slytherin common clutching her arm, silent tears streaming her cheeks. Draco stopped in front of the snake and whispered the password.

Once they were in, all of Kat's self-control withered as she started sobbing uncontrollably.

"I'm so...so...sorry Draco. I...you must hate me right now. I tried you know. It's just...just that I can't. I'm such a te-terrible person. That poor girl... Cruciated her... My fault."

In a second, Draco was next to her.

"Shh, Shh.." He whispered holding her close "It's fine, you're fine"

"I'm so pathetic Draco, you spend your time making sure I'm alright because I'm too weak to defend myself. And I'm a danger to you, I'm a liability to everyone I care about!"

"You aren't weak Kateryna, you're the strongest witch I've ever met. None of the other girls have to take the mark, you did great. You don't need to apologize, I knew it was a possibility that they might use me as leverage...It's not your fault."

"I'm so sorry..." She whispered once more. "How can you serve him Draco, he's cruel, vile, heartless!"

"Kateryna, I think you know...we don't always get to make our own choices in this world."

"You didn't want to be a Death Eater..." It wasn't a question.

"If I had to choose, I'd rather be an auror..." he said with a chuckle "I don't like it anymore then you do, all this torturing and killing. Even muggles don't deserve that, they're humans after all"

She giggled at his last sentence

"Wow I'd never thought I'd ever hear you say that..."

"well you're partially responsible for the change" he whispered in her ear as she nuzzled into his chest.

This felt good, this felt right.

"I really like you Kat..."

for a few seconds she stayed silent, pondering what he had just said. Lifting her face to look him in the eyes she whispered

"Me too Draco...Me too..."

Deciding to lighten up the mood, Draco said

"That's because I'm irresistible!"

She smacked his chest lightly

"No you aren't you prat! You're a total idiot! That's why I like you!"

"Sweet Circe! Women, why do you always resort to physical abuse!"

"Aww poor Dwaco is hurt!" Kat said in childish voice "How will I ever make it up to him?"

"Come to the Back to School Dance with me"

She was silent for a while. Surprised by his abrupt request

"If it's the only way to make it up to you" she answered in false disappointment "I was hoping to go with McLaggen, but I guess you'll do..." she pouted.

"I'm better than McLaggen"

"Oh really?" she asked slyly "Prove it!" She whispered.

Draco leaned down, kissing her soundly on the lip. Tongues intertwining as he pressed her against him. When he broke away panting, he quickly plastered a smirk on his face.

"I think I proved my point" He said

"You certainly did" she answered with a giggle.

Kissing him one last time, she got up and disappeared in the hallway leading to the girl's dorm.

In the room of requirement, a tired Ron Weasley was adding the ashwinder eggs to his fuming cauldron. Never in his life had he been so careful about a potion. He needed it to be perfect. Reading the next part of the instructions, Ron started stirring the blue mixture counterclockwise. Sweat forming on his brow.

With a loud *Boom* the cauldron exploded, covering the boy with the slimy liquid.

"I guess I'll have to start over..." Ron mumbled "Soon mione will be mine and everything will be as it was..."

Everything was going great for Kateryna. After the trauma of the Death Eater meeting she had been unable to sleep, however, her friends had been extremely supportive. After hours of discussions, Pansy had found the words to make her feel better.

"Don't let a stupid tattoo dictate your life! If you do, he wins and you loose!"

She decided to ignore it, to focus on the good things. Saturday would be the dance, she and the girls were planning on visiting Hogsmeade to find appropriate dresses on Friday afternoon. The days were going by way too fast. It seemed like ages since she had gotten the Dark mark. It was only Wednesday but it felt like two years rather than two days separated her from the traumatizing experience. Getting out of bed, she got ready for breakfast, humming to herself.

Almost skipping she walked into the common room and walked towards the Great Hall.

"someone's unusually cheery this morning!" Ceph's voice said coming from a sofa "Are you going to breakfast?"

"Yup! Wanna come?" She asked, hopeful, she hadn't had time to discuss any of the last week's events with her brother.

"Sure...I need to ask you something anyways"

Together they walked out of the common room.

"So what did you want to know?" she asked curious, sauntering next to her big brother.

"Actually a few things...How are you feeling?"

"I'm good Ceph, really, it's strange but I really feel okay!"

Her brother seemed confused for a second but shoo it off

"Oh, that's good . Okay,moving on, how are things going with Draco?"

She frowned at him

"I don't think that's any of your concern..."

"Oh you know I couldn't care less but Bella sent a letter enquiring about you..."

Kat felt slightly hurt that the crazy witch that she had come to appreciate didn't ask her directly

"Don't be upset love, I think she just didn't want to be too forward with you but her and her sister are dying to know..."

"Things are great with Draco...tell them we're going to the ball together, that should keep them occupied for a while..."

"Oh yeah Tracey told me about that!" He exclaimed, smiling fondly at the mention of the witch.

"Aww Ceph you look like a love-sick puppy!"

"I don't!"

"You do!"

They kept bickering for a while until they arrived in front of the door that led to the Great Hall. As she was about to walk in, Ceph stopped her with a hand on her arm.

"I have a last question for you sister..."

She cocked her head to the side, waiting for him to continue

"Is Tracey going to the ball with anyone?"

she erupted in a fit of giggles

"Aww Ceph!"

"C'mon Kat! Please...can you answer the damn question?!"

Starting to walk into the hall she looked over her shoulder and said

"She'd love it if you asked her"

Winking at her brother, she made her way towards her friends.

Kat hated Slughorn with a passion. Since when did he pair Slytherins and Gryfindors up together.

Harry and her had been assigned the task to prepare a batch of Draught of the Living Dead and working with a scowling Harry was starting to get extremely draining both physically and mentally.

Fanning herself, Kat removed her sweater. Continuing to prepare the potion in just a short sleeved blouse. Oblivious to the hungry look some of the men in the class shot her.

But not Harry. Harry was staring at something very different than all his male counterparts.

His eyes were locked onto Kat's wrist as she stirred the potion. The distinctive tattoo barely visible in the darkly lit room. Harry opened and closed his mouth a couple times. In shock.

_Hermione what did they do to you._He couldn't believe it, his sweet innocent Hermione might have looked different but he thought that deep down she was still the same. The mark on her skin proved otherwise. Turning towards him Kateryna noticed his look and followed his gaze. Gasping when she understood what he was looking at. He saw tears well up in her eyes.

"It's not what it seems..." She whispered

He stared at her disbelieving

"Oh so you just thought that you'd like to tattoo a snake and a skull on your wrist?"

"Yes..I mean no...I..."

Turning away from her, Harry started scribbling furiously. He felt betrayed, cheated.

"How could you Hermione?"

"It's not Hermione anymore Potter" she whispered in reply

A few seats away, Ron opened the carefully folded note. Hastily he read Harry's hurried scribble

and a smile cracked on his face

_Ron, _

_The potion wasn't such a bad idea. I'll help you. We start tonight. _

**AN:And that's a wrap! So what did you think? I took pity on Ron and decided to give him a little help for his potion because we all know there's no way he'll even be a threat to our two lovebirds without Harry! Anyways what did you think of Death Eater initiation? Oh and what about Ceph making a move on Tracey ? Hopefully the ball is going to be a big part of the next chapter! Sooooo excited for that! So I read your reviews about who Vince should date and I definitely like the idea of having him pursue Luna or maybe Astoria(I don't think she'd like him back though...)?**


	7. Chapter 7

**AN: Ugh I'm a terrible person for updating so late but this week was kind off crazy for me so yeah...Anyways I'm super excited for this chapter and I hope you enjoy it! I read all of your reviews and stuff and they were all really sweet and helpfull! So this chapter the girls are going to the ball...well sort off...anyways after the violent and sad last chapter I decided to make this one a LITTLE BIT fluffier! Hope you like it! Tell me what you think of the dresses, you can get the link below ( you actually have to copy and paste it in the google search bar because the link won't work directly from the site but if you just type the dress number and the brand it should work)**

**REVIEW please guys! you have no idea how happy they make me!**

**Enjoy!**

Kat did not know what to do anymore. As she sank to the floor in a deserted hallway.

"Whatever I do, it's wrong" she whispered to herself.

"Talking to oneself is the first sign of insanity little sis!" Cepheus said amusedly, making her jump in surprise.

"Ceph don't do that, you scared me" she said weakly

Sliding down next to her, her brother hugged her tightly. His chin resting on the top of her head.

"Hey what's the matter? You know you can talk to me..."

"It's not that simple Ceph..."

"Then make it simple" he said with a small smile

"You wouldn't understand...

"Try me."

She looked up at her brother's handsome face, worry was painted all over it as he frowned back at her.

"I'm trying to do the right thing Ceph..."

He smiled at her, squeezing her arm.

"And you're doing an excellent job"

Despair washed over her

"No I'm not Ceph! I...I...I let myself be branded like livestock!" She said pulling up her sleeve "This!" she said shoving the hideous tattoo in her brother's face "I didn't ask for this"

Sighing in defeat she pulled her knees up to her chest

"All along I hoped I would come up with some genial plan to get out of it, find a way to save us all. You, Draco, Daphne, Father..."

"Hey" Ceph said gently "It's okay"

Noticing she was about to continue diminishing herself he put a finger on her lips, stopping the imminent flow of words.

"You're doing wonderful considering the situation. Most normal persons would have had a breakdown by now. We both know that once the Dark Lord sets his sights on you there's only two choices: join him or suffer. You made the right choice sweetheart. I don't particularly want it either" He said, exposing his own Dark Mark "But do I really have a choice? "

"I want a choice though" Kat said, but her protest was weak. Unconvinced.

Ceph smiled softly "I know..."

"Harry saw it." She whispered to him

Ceph eyes widened slightly but he quickly schooled his features

"So that's why you're upset?"

"I might sound so stupid but even after all the rejection and the angst I still want them to understand...When he saw it, for one second I hoped he would understand just how deep in I already am. I thought maybe he'd forgive me...Harry, I always considered him a truly good person. I thought he would come around..."

"Don't upset yourself over this sweetheart. They're not worth it. They're the guilty ones here. You can't choose your family..."

Kat stopped shaking in his arms as she looked up at him. Her gaze more confident.

"You know what, you're right! I'll stop wasting tears over them."

"That's my girl!" Ceph said with a laugh.

Regaining her senses she got up and started picking up her scattered books.

"Oh my god Ceph what I've been thinking? We're going to be late to Ancient Runes! Oh my god..." She whimpered "I've never been late ! Ever!"

With these last words she started running towards their next class swearing under her breath.

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Draco was lounging in the common room thankfull he dropped Ancient Runes when Theo walked into the room, a blissful smile on his face.

"Someone's happy" Draco said to his friend

"Mate that girl will be the death of me..." Theo said dropping next to him on the couch

I can totally relate. Draco thought as the pretty face of his fiance popped into his head.

"I swear she's the love of my life or something and she has such beautiful ti..."

"God Theo nobody wants to hear praise your girlfriend's breast all the time!" Blaise exclaimed walking into the room.

"Yeah dude!" Draco said with a laugh, trying to push away the memory of his kisses with Kat in order to focus on the conversation "You're getting soppy!"

Blaise got up and started a dramatic imitation of Theo

"Oh Daphne, love of my life , your breasts make the sun look pale..." He was quickly silenced by a couple of carefully aimed pillows.

"So Draco." Theo started looking at him inquisitively while Blaise continued "How are things going with your little lioness?" Blaise finished the sentence with a dramatic eyebrow raise to which Draco responded with a playful shove before becoming more serious.

"I don't know man. She confuses the hell out of me..."

"Girls can do that..." Blaise mumbled. Both his friends looked at each other knowing exactly who he was talking about.

"I honestly have no idea how to act around her sometimes. I'm not even sure if she's agreed to a relationship with me. Especially since what happened at the Manor..."

Both his friends looked sympathetically at him. They had been at the meeting and had been absolutely horrified by their friends' suffering.

"She's been really strong..." Theo said. Remembering the look of complete despair on the girl's face as "she desperately tried to perform the unforgivable. "She's probably feeling guilty about all of this."

"Yeah I agree mate." Blaise said " Pansy was telling me about how she broke down in her room yesterday night...Sobbing and mumbling about it was her fault you got hurt..."

Draco was shocked at this last bit of news

"She acted so calm with me. I asked her to the dance and she even made a joke...I don't understand! How am I supposed to make her feel better if she won't open up to me"

He felt sad and a little bit angry. Not understanding why Kat wouldn't confide in him.

"Put yourself in her place Drake! I mean you used to be her worst enemy there is probably some leftover mistrust"

He stopped Draco's imminent protesting by holding up an hand

"I'm not saying she doesn't trust you but It's probably hard for her to confide completely in anyone lately...Also, she probably doesn't want you to worry!"

Draco was actually pretty surprised at his friend's level of insight. It seemed like in a very short time they had matured into so much more than the petty teenagers they used to be.

"This whole thing really changed us..." Draco said voicing his thoughts aloud.

Both his friends nodded, understanding perfectly what he meant.

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"No Ron, the book specifically says to cut these vertically" huffed an exasperated Harry Potter.

He was starting to doubt his decision to help Ron, especially since their third cauldron just exploded. However, Ron's reasoning sounded so sound. They would feed 'their' Hermione the potion and she would fall back in love with Ron. "The way it was always supposed to be" as Ron himself said. Once they would get her off the potion she would be grateful for them saving her from whatever spell the Slytherin put her under and would forget about them feeding her the potion at all.

"Let's start again shall we..." Harry said with a sigh.

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Kat was making her way to lunch humming happily when a pair of strong hands grabbed her pulling her in a dark corner. She was about to scream in terror when she was spun around and met Draco's beautiful silver orbs.

"Hey there" she said with a small smile "it's not nice to scare proper young ladies!"

Draco responded with a smirk

"You're hardly a lady and definitely not proper" he said, his voice husky as he let his gaze roam over her body.

Smacking him on the arm she pretended to be offended.

" Hey I resent that!" Noticing his gaze she put her hands on his eyes "Stop that you perv!

He simply laughed and grabbed her hands placing them on his shoulder

"Am I not allowed to look at my betrothed glorious figure?"

She couldn't stifle a giggle

"Flattery will get you nowhere Draco! Anyways why did you drag me in this dark corner' she said her eyebrow rose.

Instantly his features became more serious and he tightened his grip on her.

"Oh yeah" he said, hesitating for a second "I just wanted to know...is everything okay? I mean we didn't really talk about what happened, I don't even know if you want to talk about it

She bit her lip at his question

"I don't know, I'm not sure I want to talk about it. It was my first time you know, using an unforgivable I mean. It scares me that it will probably not be my last"

Pulling her closer, he let his chin rest on the top of her head.

"I'll take care of you..." he whispered hoping with all his heart he would be able to keep his promise.

She snuggled deeper into his chest

"I really like you Draco" she whispered.

The blissful smile on Draco's face did not disappear as he dragged her by the hand inside the Grand Hall.

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"Look at him..." Ron grumbled as he watched Draco and Kat run along the Great Hall holding hands and laughing like children while they joined their snake friends. "I don't know what potion he fed her but she looks like a lovesick puppy it's disgusting."

Harry didn't know what to say to his friends and choose to settle with an:

"It'll be fixed soon anyways..."

Ron grunted as he observed Malfoy that was currently snaking his hand around HIS witch's waist

"So much beauty wasted on a slimy ferret..." Ron grumbled.

"Ron seriously I don't know what you're talking about!' Neville said from Harry's left "I'm glad she's finally found a good guy for her" with a fond smile he whispered "she still our Hermione after all."

"Are you crazy Neville, you really are that stupid after all!" Ron exploded "The snakes OBVIOUSLY fed her some sort of love potion!" He continued gesticulating to the Slytherin table.

"Ron, mate, everyone is staring! Calm down" Harry hissed noticing the half-amused/ half-worried expression of the rest of the Great hall. Jumpin up from his seat, the ginger boy stalked towards the Slytherin Table.

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"Please Draco don't fight with him..." Kat whispered as she watched worriedly the boy making his way towards them. Draco simply tightened his grip around her waist. Kissing the top of her head he got up. Kat wanted to stop, him, tell him it wasn't worth it and that she could defend herself but Pansy's hand on her arm stopped her.

"He needs to prove to himself that he can still protect you, especially after what happened..."

Kat couldn't argue against her friend and decided to let her boyfriend handle this situation.

Daphne smiled approvingly at her action but her gaze quickly shifted to the ginger standing in front of their table.

" Who do you think you are Malfoy touching my girls like this?"

" Your girl?" Draco snarled "Knowing my BETROTHED she probably won't appreciate being treated like an object?"

At the word betrothed Ron started spluttering, his face tearing a vibrant shade of read and his fist clenching. Without a word he tried to grab Kat's arm and drag her away, his fingers painfully digging in the soft flesh of her arm. He was met by ten drawn wands. Before he could do anything more, Draco's fist collided with his face, bones crushing with a sickening crack.

"You'll never touch my girlfriend again. Am I making myself clear Weasel?" Draco hissed as Ron clutched his profusely bleeding nose.

"C'mon sweetheart lets go" Draco said softly, taking Kat's hand and guiding her out of the room.

Kat was shocked. Never in her life had Ron truly hurt her. Of course he'd insulted her before and hurt her psychologically but he never laid a single hand on her. Today, his grip on her arm had been barely bearable. Looking down at her arm she noticed bruises slowly forming on her skin.

"Kat are you ok?" Draco whispered ushering her into the boys dormitory looking worried.

"I'm so sorry for letting that slip...really I promise I didn't think about the consequences!"

Kat didn't understand what he was talking about as he kept apologizing profusely. Everything felt fuzzy as if somebody had pulled a piece over her eyes making her unable to understand anything about the world around her.

"Why are you apologizing Draco?" she asked, still confused.

Draco stared at her, interrupted in his flow of apologies and justifications.

"You're not mad?"

"For what"

"Telling everyone about us, the betrothal and everything..."

As realization hit her Kat's hand flew to her mouth realizing that the whole school now knew about something she wasn't still completely able to accept. Taking a deep breath she answered her obviously worried fiance.

"I think that seeing us holding hands in the Great Hall made it clear we were an item, how we came about is no one's business..."

"So I'm forgiven?" Draco asked expectantly

She gave him a sly smile

"Not quite"

Draco's eyebrows skyrocketed as her recognized Kateryna's expression as being one he wore very often.

"What do you want you wicked witch?"

"This" she said pulling on his tie and joining their lips. It was a simple kiss, short and sweet. It was over before Draco even knew it.

"Now you're forgiven" Kat said softly, her eyes twinkling.

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"I swear Harry that Imperius curse must be really powerful! Her boyfriend basically threatened me and she just sat there." Ron ranted to his best friend. "He can't take what's mine!"

Harry didn't know what to say, he had helped his friend with the potion for just one week but he was already having second thoughts.

"Ron, mate, you're acting crazy..."

Ron spun around spilling all of his sliced belladonna roots in the fuming cauldron.

"Are you saying I have no right to complain about Hermione being cursed and stolen from us? She's mine Harry! We were meant to be! "

Harry was taken aback by the insane glint in his friends' eyes

"That's it Ron, I want out! You're not thinking straight. Kateryna obviously likes Malfoy and this is getting out of hand. I really trusted your reasoning but I'm pretty sure she's not under any sort of spell or potion!"

"What did you just call her?" Ron asked, furious.

"Kateryna. We have to admit she is not our Hermione anymore and you know what if she's happy then good for her."

"So you're giving up?"

"No. I'm just admitting we lost her. Nothing will get her back Ron, we've been awful to her! You can't continue to fool yourself and hope that she'll eventually come back to us but I don't think it's going to happen anytime soon! You can keep on going with this crap but I'm done!"

Ron watched his best friend walk out the door, slamming it loudly.

"Shit" he whispered as he noticed his cauldron slowly melting on the table, destroying hours worth of work.

"You'll be mine Hermione" he mumbled through gritted teeth.

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"Oh my god girls I feel like we've been at this for HOURS!" Tracey whined as they shifted through racks and racks of dresses. They had been looking for their back-to-school dance dresses for the whole afternoon now and were getting desperate.

"Oh my god girls I found it!" Daphne exclaimed

All the girls turned towards their friends, their eyes widening at the sight of the beautiful dress Daphne was holding. It was a full length gown in a pretty shade of periwinkle, so pale it almost looked white. The bodice was made of a beautiful flower lace pattern juxtaposed on a nude fabric. The dress was sleeveless and seemed to be off the shoulder. The light fabric of the skirt hung loosely forming small pleats at the bottom, flaring into a fishtail skirt.

"Wow Daphne, just wow!" Pansy whispered.

"You'll look like a princess in that!" Millie exclaimed

At the very same time, Tracey pulled a dress of an hanger and whispered

"That's the one for me..."

It was a simple white dress with a pleated bodice and a long,loose skirt. The very short sleeves were made of a variety of little blue and green gemstones creating a complex pattern at the shoulders.

"This is unfair!" Kat complained "You guys just found the prettiest dresses ever!"

"Merlin girls stop complaining!" Daphne squeaked as she pulled another dress of the rack "Millie this dress was made for you!"

The beautiful white gown had an empire cut, with a bodice covered with an intricate pattern of gemstones and gold thread, just under the breast the dress flared slightly probably falling down past the wearer's feet in soft pleats. The cut would definitely compliment Millie's ample cleavage and the fact that it uncovered one's back added just enough sexiness to seduce Millie.

"I know someone that will be head over heels for you!" Pansy giggled

Kat was impressed by Millie's acting skill as the girl pulled off a perfectly innocent face, probably an arduous task considered the compromising position in which Kat had found her and Greg.

"I don't know who you're talking about."

Pansy gave her a knowing smile but quickly her gaze was diverted to a rack in the very back of the store. Walking towards it she pulled off a dress. The gown was also white. Strapless with a tight bodice and an ample skirt made out of a very light chiffon. The bodice was embroidered in a gold geometric pattern in which were weaved small diamonds.

"Now we only need a dress for you sweetheart!" Tracey said to Kat.

But Kat had already found her own dress, with a smile she turned to her friends.

"It's a miracle!"

The dress was of a somptuous emerald color, sleeveless with a skirt similar to Pansy's: Long and bodice was encrusted with emeralds and a dark silver thread traced semicircular geometric patterns over the top part.

"House colors huh?" Daphne said with a smile

"Draco will like that!" Tracey added with a giggle

Rolling her eyes Kat started walking towards the front of the shop.

"C'mon guys let's pay for this and go back to the castle..."

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That evening the girls couldn't sleep. the excitement over the upcoming dance was making it impossible for them even to close their eyes. They chatted about everything from boys to clothes. And only went to bed when Pansy pointed out they needed beauty sleep.

"WAAAAAKE UP SLEEPY HEAD!" Daphne singsonged jumping on Kat's bed

Kat let out a very un lady like grunt and pulled her pillow over her head but it was quickly snatched away by the hyperactive blonde.

"Aren't you Slytherins supposed to be calm and composed?" Kat whined when her covers were snatched away from her.

"You're a Slytherin too baby girl!" Daphne squeaked "And anyways as Theo always says, I'm only in Slytherin because of family tradition!"

"Yeah I agree!" Pansy said her head buried in her own pillow "you should be a stupid Hufflepuff..."

She was silenced by a pillow thrown her way

"Hey, not nice!" Daphne exclaimed

As the girls started to get up Kat realized what day it was

"Oh Sweet Circe! The ball is today!"

"Why do you think I woke you up?" Daphne asked amusedly

"Because you're a royal pain in the ass?" Trace supplied while slowly stretching

"You guys really hurt my feelings! I'm going to go visit my handsome boyfriend!"

"I have an idea!" Pansy said jumping off her bed. "Let's wake 'em up!"

All huddling together the girls started forming a plan whispering excitedly.

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Draco was sleeping peacefully when he felt a weight on his chest and a soft breath close to his ear. Opening his eyes slowly he was blinded for a second by the light coming from the open curtains. When his gaze refocused, his eyes widened and his mouth hung open.

"This dream is getting better and better..." he mumbled

Kat was looking down at him, dressed in her night clothes. Her hands were placed on both sides of his head and her legs straddled his chest. At his comment she laughed wholeheartedly, throwing her head backwards. Turning his head to the side, Draco noticed that the other girls were waking up his friends in similar ways.

"Are you real?" He asked still a little bit confused.

She giggled once again.

"Extremely real" She said pinching his cheek to prove her point

"I should make sure..." he said, his voice getting husky as he realized in exactly which position his girlfriend was.

"And how do you...Oh!" Kat said as he pulled her down for a kiss. Effortlessly he flipped her onto her back and deepened the kiss.

"Get a room!" Daphne screamed from her boyfriend's arms

"Shhh Daph it's rude to interrupt" Theo said with a smirk

Unfortunatelly for Draco, Ceph was now completely awake and proceeded to separate his little sister from the blonde young man.

"Seriously Malfoy don't ever do that in my presence again!" the dark haired boy mumbled as he walked back to his bed , now taken over by Tracey.

"Not fair" Kat pouted "If you and Tracey decided to kiss I wouldn't say anything..."

"It's different if I kissed Tracey you wouldn't have to worry about me taking advantage of her it would be more the other way around" clasping his hands on his mouth, Ceph realized what he just said.

"Oh my god Trace it's not what I..."

He was silenced by Tracey's lips on his own.

All the girls in the room 'awwed' at the new couple while the guys merely smirked at each other congratulating their friends and whistling as loud as possible.

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The day passed in a blizz. The group spent the morning lazing around. Around ten the girls dragged the boys to the lake for a 'short' tanning session and a picnic. The outing fastly turned into a cheerful mess when Ceph dumped Daphne into the lake. Theo forced to defend his girlfriend honor had had to retaliate by making Tracey join her friend in the water. Draco had grabbed Kat by surprised and a few second later she landed next to the two other girls with a huge splash. A few minutes later everyone was in the water, splashing and laughing. They had had to put an end to the water battle around four because a panicked Pansy had started screeching that she needed time to get ready. Before going back into the castle everyone had to dry off and look presentable because as Draco put it "Slytherins have a reputation to keep!"

Now all five girls were chatting happily in their dormitory, the door barricaded to keep the curious boys out.

"Did you see my lipstick Pansy?" Daphne asked getting out of the bathroom. Her blond hair pulled half up and pinned with a pretty diamond encrusted barrette. Beautiful pear shaped diamond earrings completed her outfit.

"I think it's on that shelf!" Tracey said "But you really don't need it!"

Kat had to agree with Tracey, Daphne already looked stunning. Her already long lashes were coated with mascara and a little blush on her cheek made the simple make look absolutely perfect.

"Yeah your dress and hairstyle look so pure!" Pansy commented you don't need it. "How do I look?" She asked spinning around to show off her whole outfit.

Pansy's hair was styled in a dutch flower braid, small pearls were scattered amongst the hairstyle making it look even more elegant.

"Stunning!" Daphne said.

The witch's cherry lips curled into a smile while her brown , dark rimmed eyes twinkled mischievously.

"How about me?" Millie asked walking out of the bathroom. Her hair was pulled back in a loose low bun, strands framing her face. Millie's green eyes were complemented by an earth toned smokey eye and her lips were colored a beautiful very transparent pink, barely noticeable over her naturally red lips.

"Millie!" All the girls squeaked

"Greg will love you!" Tracey said.

"Oh shut up Tracey you look fabulous too!" Millie retorted.

Tracey smiled happily, her long auburn hair was tied back in a long fishtail braid, a couple of strands let loose around her face. Her make up was very light but brought out her gorgeous eyes.

"I think the winner is still our Kat..." She whispered

All the girls agreed turning to their friend they all started complimenting her

"Draco's one lucky guy!" Daphne said happily.

Kat did look stunning, her hair was let loose but had been curled carefully by Pansy. It was hanging in loose curls down her back, stopping at her waist. One side had been pinned back slightly with a beautiful emerald comb. Her makeup was light, a little bit of mascara and a hint of lip gloss but her half-veela beauty didn't need anything more, she was glowing.

"I think we all look good!" She said, making her way towards the stairs.

"Let's go have fun!" Daphne said happily.

Little did they know it was the beginning of a crazy evening.

**AN: Doone!**

**If you want to see the girl's dresses here are the links:**

**Dahpne's: Sherri_Hill_11151 **

**Tracey's :Sherri_Hill_11087**

**Millie's: Sherri_Hill_11108.**

**Pansy's: Sherri_Hill_11107**

**Kateryna's: Sherri_Hill_11075**

****( you actually have to copy and paste it in the google search bar because the link won't work directly from the site but if you just type the dress number and the brand it should work)****

**Tell me if you liked them! And guess who Crabe is going to the dance with?**

**Please review and everything! Love you guys.**


	8. Chapter 8

**AN: Ahhhh I'm done! Wew another chapter done! You guys should totally review more because they just inspire me so much! So what did you think of the girls dresses did anyone actually go look at them? Anyways I won't write anything more in this AN because I'm too scare of spoiling the chapter... I'll write more at the bottom...**

**Enjoy it ! REVIEW :P**

Draco and his friends were nervously awaiting the girls at the bottom of the staircase. All of them were fidgeting anxiously as the clock ticked by. Deciding to ease the tension Draco started thinking of a possible conversation topic, with a smirk he turned towards Crabbe:

"So Vince...Who's your date?"

His burly friend turned towards him, his face reddening by the second.

"None of your buisness Drake."

Sensing his friend's discomfort, Blaise decided to embarrass him further.

"Aww Vince! Why won't you tell us? It can't be that bad...oh wait...is it Eloise Midgen?"

Vince threw him an outraged look

"NO."

"Perhaps Marietta Edgecombe..."

"Dude even I wouldn't sink that low! These hideous pimples on her forehead never went away?" Vince wrinkled his nose in distaste.

"Parvati Patil?"

"I wish..."

"Ginny Weasley?"

"Are you crazy man?" Draco said at this suggestion "Even Vince has enough sense to know that she is all over Potter!"

Crabbe grunted in agreement

"Is it Cho Chan then?"

"Man I wish I went to the ball with THAT Ravenclaw..." Crabbe answered

"So it's a Ravenclaw..." Ceph whispered more to himself than his friends.

"Padma Patil?"

Vince glared at his friend "Do you really think she would go with me?"

The guys looked at each other, Crabbe never showed it but they all knew he suffered of his lack of popularity with the female population. Of course he wasn't exactly a looker but Quiditch had done him a lot of good and once you got to know him he was less stupid than he seemed to be.

"Lisa Turpin?" Goyle said trying to get back to the topic at end.

"Nope."

"Cmon dude you've got to tell us!"

Draco had never seen his friend so embarrassed

"Okay but you better not make fun of me...or of her!"

Blaise walked up to his friend he held out his pinky finger and in a high, girly voice shrieked

"Pinky Promise!"

"I really hope the other houses NEVER see you doing that Zabini..." Theo mumbled

"It's Luna" Crabbe blurted out

"Luna?"

"Lovegood" Vince said his tone daring them to make fun of him.

"She's pretty enough I guess" Ceph said with a shrug

Draco was about to answer when he heard a chorus of hushed voices and soft giggles coming from the staircase. The six boys spinned around to face the origin of the noise.

"Wow." Theo breathed as his girlfriend walked down the stairs gracefully. She gave him a soft smile.

"You cleaned up rather well too..."

Diverting his attention from the happy couple, Draco's gaze went back to the stairs. He wasn't disappointed. Before him stood a goddess clad in green and silver. She blushed lightly as his gaze roamed freely over her body.

"House colors, huh." he said with a smirk

She glared at him in mock annoyance hitting his arm lightly her eyes twinkling with mischief

"You're insufferable."

"You can't say you didn't expect that one love" He answered smoothly "I thought you knew me better..."

She rolled her eyes at his comment

"Oh but I know you quite well "

He raised an eyebrow at her

"Are you certain ? Are you really sure you know ALL of me?" she blushed furiously

Daphne interrupted the exchange by exclaiming

"Are you done exchanging dirty words you two? I want to par-teyyy!" the way she drew out the last syllable was so ridiculous that it interrupted the staring contest going on between Greg and Millie.

"I swear these two..." Pansy whispered to Kat as Millie and Greg once again made eye contact refusing to speak to each other, they were having a fight about how matchin Greg's robes were to her dress "They always find an excuse to argue..."

"But then they have the best make-up sex..." Kat blurted out without thinking , clasping her hands over her mouth when she realized what she just said.

Pansy was staring at her disbelieving

"No. No,no,no don't tell me...they? Oh my god! You walked in on them didn't you?!" She whispered half shocked, half excited.

Kat nodded

"It is not a memory I particularly want to recall..."

Draco couldn't help but chuckle at the conversation he had just overheard. Sometimes girls were so complicated. He had known about Millie and Greg for weeks, he hadn't stopped talking about it after the first time..."

"Whatcha laughing at all by yourself Malfoy?" Theo asked jokingly "Maybe you should have gone on a date with Looney!"

"Hey!" Crabbe exclaimed indignated

"You're going to the ball with Luna?" Kat asked incredulous

Crabbe noded in response

"I can't believe she said yes..." She whispered.

"Thank you Dolohov...It's nice to know you have faith in me..." Vince snarled.

The room erupted in another fit of giggles and snickers

They walked out of the room together still joking and fooling around. The hallways were beautifully decorated for the occasion, A silky cloth was draped all over the walls and the ceiling making the whole castle look like a giant tent. Trees and flowers had been planted everywhere, magically sprouting from the floor itself. Little pink candles hovered at eye level marking a rose scented path towards the great hall. Even from a distance, the loud music emanating from the great hall could be heard as clearly as if they were in the room. Spirits were high as the slytherin made their way through the deserted hallways. Conversation was flowing easily and within minutes they arrived in the Great Hall. Couples were slowly trickling in, dressed in their very best robes. In the crowd, Kat recognised a few of her old housemates. Parvati Patil, clad in a short light pink dress was looking up at a very handsome looking guy, giggling at everything he said. Kat couldn't put her finger on it but he looked oddly familiar.

"Is that?" Pansy asked

"No!" Daphne breathed

"Oh my god..." Millie whispered

"Yum! He's hotter than you Ceph!" Tracey said saucily winking at her obviously annoyed boyfriend.

Once the information reached her brain, Kat couldn't help but to cry out:

"Neville!"

The handsome boy turned towards her with a bright smile, grabbing Parvati's hand he dragged her over

"Hey...Kat! I was wondering when I'd get to see you again!" He said as he hugged her "By the way don't listen to Ron or Harry, they're being real shitheads..." He whispered to her.

"Malfoy, Zabini, Nott..." He said in greeting, extending his hand he introduced himself to Ceph.

To her surprise, Kat overheard Parvati and Pansy chatting happily and comparing dates

"You've been playing Quidditch Longbottom." Draco said, it was more an affirmation than a question but Kat shot him a smile and a thankful look for trying to be half-decent to her friend.

"I have" Neville confirmed with a grin. "Who knows Malfoy maybe I'll see you on the pitch this year...Anyways me and Parv have to go, we're meeting with Hannah and Ernie! See you inside!"

With these last words he spun around grabbed Parvati by the waist and walked away. The Indian witch turned around, shooting Kat a last smile and a wink to which she responded with a thumbs up and a tilt of her head indicating Neville.

"I don't know what happened to him..." She said with a laugh "That is SO not the Neville I used to know!"

"He looks gorgeous...wow, just wow...Patil is one lucky witch!" Millie said starting another small argument with Greg.

"Is that the awkward, shy kid you were talking about?!" Ceph asked "He gave me the impression of being somewhat a flirt..."

"Yeah that's him" Theo answer "or rather that WAS him...I can't explain the change"

"Are we done drooling over Longbottom here?" Blaise asked in fake annoyance

At that very moment, Kat saw Harry walk into the Great Hall. Ginny was by his side, clad in a pretty ivory dress. The two girl's eyes met for a second and Ginny gave her a sad, hesitating smile. Harry noticing the exchange locked eyes with her. Kat was surprised to recognize affection in his dark green eyes, an emotion he hadn't direct at her in a long time. Feeling a tug on her arm, Kat broke the eye contact. Draco was looking at her, his brows furrowed.

"You ok?"

She nodded in response, she really didn't want Draco to get involved in her issues with Harry and Ron more than he already had.

"Let's go!" She said with a smile

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Ron Weasley was furious, walking into the great hall with Lavender Brown on his arm desperately trying to get his attention. But he didn't care about her. The only reason she was there was because he thought she might make his witch jealous. He had half expected Hermione to rush up to him and tell him just how sorry she was. But she didn't , she stood next to the Ferret with wide eyes.

"Slut." He hissed as he watched her laugh at something Malfoy said.

"Ron! Hey! Ron!" Lavender whispered to him "Can you stop staring and actually dance with me?"

Ron barely acknowledged her. With one last huf the blonde let go of his arm

"You know what Ron? I'm so over you! You ask me to the dance and then you spend the whole night ogling Kateryna! You're such an arse!

"Her name is NOT Kateryna!"

"Yes it is!" Lavender hissed "You're in fucking denial Ron! You blew your chance with her and you know it but at some point you've got to take responsibility for just how much of an idiot you've been especially when it comes to her! I don't want to be your rebound anymore!

"Fine Lavender, your loss! And why do you blame me so much? Uh? Harry reacted just the same way I did!"

"Yeah but he is starting to feel seriously bad about it, him and Ginny were arguing over it yesterday night and he actually knows that he's been too harsh with her! Do you really think she has a choice? No, don't answer that you'll just make me more mad!"

She stared at him furious

"You know what Ron, fuck you!" she spat, with these last words she walked into the great hall.

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Astoria Greengrass was not having a good night, infact, she wasn't having a good year. Since her first year at Hogwarts she had tried her best to seduce the Malfoy heir but now all these years of effort had gone to waste. Astoria was going to be the shame of her family, with no eligible pureblood heir around she was going to end up alone. Shunned by everyone. Sinking to the floor she started to cry.

"All that effort.." she sobbed pulling bobby pins out of her carefully structured bun "...so dedicated" she whispered "All I wanted was to land an husband as good as Daphne's" she sobbed again "Shame of the family" she whispered pulling her knees to her chest. "Oh my god..." she sobbed again as realization hit her "they'll make me take the mark..." she felt tears streaming down her face. "No.."

The Greengrass family only had daughters which meant that none of the heir were currently serving the Dark Lord as they were expected to marry and bear children. It was their way to contribute in the war, keep the family lines going. If Astoria didn't marry she would have no excuse but to become a Death Eater in order to fulfill her duties.

Astoria was so deep in thought she didn't hear the footsteps as somebody ran up the stairs. It was Weasley, hoping he hadn't noticed her she tried to wipe her tears away but it was too late, a flash of light coming from the fireworks outside illuminated the corner she was sitting in and exposed her face. Looking up at him she was shocked to see he looked just as upset as she did.

"Greengrass right?" Weasley asked warily.

She nodded weakly in response

"Astoria" she precised.

"Right...um...are you ok"

she laughed coldly

"Considering I probably just ruined my only chance at happiness and love I guess I'm doing fine..."

Astoria was surprised at her own words, she usually didn't open up to strangers that easily. She was astonished when Weasley sat down next to her.

"Same here..."

"You liked her a lot didn't you..."

"I'll go as far as saying I loved her...she'd probably argue I don't even know what love is about" He chuckled "She used to say I have the emotional range of a teaspoon..."

Astoria couldn't help but smile

"She might be right...I mean about men in general...not you in particular..." She added hastily

Letting his head rest against the wall, Weasley looked at her.

"What about you?"

Astoria started talking and she couldn't stop anymore, all the built up fear and pressure she put on herself just poured out while tears streamed down her face. And Weasley listened without saying a word until with one last sob she was done

"Hey Astoria it's fine..." Ron whispered wiping a tear of her face. The contact made Astoria shuder. She lost all control, she just needed to be close to someone. To feel loved and respected for once. Grabbing Ron by the neck she kissed him hard on the mouth, forgetting about everything: expectations, blood-purity, house conflicts...The kiss quickly heated up as Ron's hand began wandering up and down her body. Before long, the pair stumbled into a broom cupboard not giving a damn about the consequences and forgetting one very simple charm.

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"I love"

"No I love you"

"I love you more"

"No I do"

"No I do!"

"No"

"Yes"

"No"

"Yes"

"N.."

"Guys are you done being sickeningly in love?" Kat asked exasperated.

The dance was barely starting but Theo and Daphne had been debating about whose love was stronger for several minutes now. In the meantime they also fed each other food and couldn't stop touching each other. Draco and Kat were becoming extremely annoyed with them but wouldn't dare say anything.

"Let's dance" Draco said throwing a disgusted look at his friend that was currently being fed a strawberry by Daphne.

"Yeah" Kat said eagerly, she was becoming sick of the couple's display of attention.

The music playing was fast paced and couples were dancing suggestively on the dance floor. Couples forming and splitting in the dim lit Great Hall. Grabbing her by the waist, Draco brought her close to him. Connecting their hips he started swaying in rhythm with the music occasionally making her do a small spin before pulling her close again. The music was booming in rhythm with her heart and her head felt empty, the only thing that mattered was her body pressed against Draco's. She didn't know for how long they danced like this, their bodies undulating in rhythm. The music changed, it was a slow muggle song "Time of my life". Draco pulled her even closer, his chin resting on the top of her head . Her face buried in his shoulder. They started swaying slowly

"You're beautiful" He whispered.

She looked up flashing him a smile

"You aren't too bad yourself..."

'Hey! I'm..." He stopped abruptly and pulled on her elbow to make her follow his gaze. She couldn't stifle a giggle. Vince was kissing Luna Lovegood and the kiss couldn't exactly qualified as innocent.

"Oh god!" She exclaimed "That's surprising!"

Draco was looking at her a hungry look in his eyes

"Draco you okay?"

He nodded

"Just inspired" He said leaning down and capturing her lips

_Now with passion in our eyes_

_There's no way we could disguise it_

_Secretly_

_So we take each other's hand_

_'Cause we seem to understand_

_The urgency just remember_

She couldn't believe what she was doing, kissing him in front of the whole school but she decided not to think about it too much. All that mattered was Draco right now. She didn't even know how this all happened, how she started liking him. She stopped thinking

_You're the one thing_

_I can't get enough of_

_So I'll tell you something_

_This could be love because_

His hands were in her hair, hers were clutching his shirt. She was lost, there was no coming back from this. But she didn't care, she didn't care everybody would know because Draco was so close and his lips on hers were so intoxicating. He tasted like mint and lemon and sugar and she couldn;t get enough. He deepened the kiss making her moan very softly, she felt him smile on her lips.

_I've had the time of my life_

_No I never felt this way before_

_Yes I swear it's the truth_

_And I owe it all to you_

This was nice she thought as Draco's strong arms wrapped around her waist. This felt right.

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"Harry" Ginny said "Harry look at me!"

Harry tore his gaze from the blissful couple kissing in the middle of the dance floor.

"She looks happy..." He said

"She is..." His girlfriend replied softly "But she'd be happier if you were able to support her through all of this"

"Ginny, she bears the mark!" He exclaimed trying to convince himself that he didn't miss the know-it-all young women.

"We already discussed this, it's not her choice!"

Harry looked into his girlfriend eyes, their dark chocolate color usually made him feel better but right now they were flashing with anger.

"You messed up Harry! Ron and you treated her like shit, I understand that the new came as a shock and that you needed to keep your distance for a while but this needs to stop!"

"But Ron..." He interjected

"Ron is an idiot! He had the biggest crush on HERMIONE GRANGER and can't cope with the fact that discovering her real identity changed her a little bit...But you want to know something, I like the new Hermione. She is not acting like some snotty Slytherin but she actually learned to have fun! You have to apologize to Kateryna before this gets too bad!"

He hung his head in shame hearing the truth in his girlfriend's words.

"She'll never forgive me..."

"I think she will Harry" Ginny whispered hugging him.

Harry smiled at his girlfriend. She was the epitome of beauty in her simple ivory dress showing off her shoulders and her...hum...other assets.

"Where's Ron by the way?" Ginny asked looking around.

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"No one can know about this Ron!" Astoria said while straightening his robes and trying to tame his hair.

"If anyone asks just say you got upset over Kateryna or something...ok?"

Ron nodded his head barely listening to her, it was hard to focus when she was lecturing him in her underwear.

"Do you have to leave so soon?"

"Ron what if someone sees us together...I would ruin the meager chance I have at marriage!"

"Please stay a little longer..."

"Not here." She said her determination weakening. No one ever wanted to be with Astoria, she was always considered just a dumb pretty girl and for the first time somebody actually cared.

"I know the perfect place!" Ron said "Come with me!" he said grabbing her hand

"Ron I'm in my underwear!"

"Oh here." He said shrugging his outer robes off "Put this on! Now let's go!"

Without a warning he swept her of her feet and threw her over his shoulder towards the room of requirement

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"Wew! This was fun!" Millie said flopping onto her bed

It had been a wonderful night, as the evening went on the younger students stated leaving until only the seventh and sixth years were left. For the first time ever a couple of Slytherin had started talking with Gryffindor. Infact, Pansy, Daphne and Parvati had started a friendly discussion about what the dream wedding dress would look like. After a while Millie and Tracey had joined, soon Lavender Brown and Ginny came over to debate the topic. The boys weren't as eager to mingle with other houses but when leaving Kat had noticed Draco nodding in Neville's direction. For someone like Draco that was about as affectionate as he'd get with the Gryffindors.

"You get a lot of credit for that Kat." Pansy said "If it weren't for you I would have never realized that Gryffindors and ex-Gryffindors can be really normal people..."

"Yeah I agree!" Tracey said "There's only one thing that worries me..."

All the girls turned towards her, surprised. Usually Tracey was a pretty positive person and of all of them she was probably the one that had got along the best with the Gryffindors and even with a couple of Hufflepuff.

"What?" Millie urged her on

"Our parents...they won't like this at all...and I don't think the Dark Lord would tolerate us being friends with these people..."

The girls blanched visibly looking at each other they realized that Tracey was right.

"The Dark Lord doesn't have to know." Kat whispered "It's not a vile act of treason to get along with people from other houses. Even Draco said goodbye to Neville on the way out! It can't be that bad"

"You know as well as I do that there is no way we could be friends or even cordial acquaintances with persons like Ginny Weasley for both our and their safety! The Dark Lord reads mind how can be stop him from reading ours"

"Aren't you sick of this?! Obeying him, being constantly scared for your family and friends?"

"Obviously..." Daphne said tiredly "I'm so afraid for Theo everytime he mentions a Death Eater meeting but what can we do..."

"I don't think we can actually fight the Dark Lord but we can help, we can support those that have the power to destroy him! I know you girls don't really give a crap about pureblood supremacy, you were raised that way but you're not stupid you know it's a bunch of bull!"

"We do..." Millie said "I used to believe in it but then he came back and I saw what he can do. That man is a psychopath and if it were really up to me I would not want to have anything to do with him!"

"Same here..." Pansy said "But he knows if you aren't loyal and I, we can't afford to put our families in danger..."

"We won't !" Kat said " We'll protect our minds, learn occlumency and then we'll find a way to help bring him down! Are you with me?"

"I don't know Kat..." Tracey whispered

"Tracey! Do you really want Ceph to die on the battlefield? Do you want him to be crucioed everytime he fails? I don't ! I want to have a real, normal family life without the threat of You-Know-Who hovering over our heads!"

The room fell silent for a few second then Daphne spoke up

"We need a plan..."

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"Potter! Potter! Wake up now! You have to leave, now!"

Harry shot up, opening his eyes he met the Headmistress' worried gaze

"What is it?"

"You'll know soon enough! You have to leave, now! Find the Horcruxes, all of them. We need you! Ms. Weasley is being woken up, she will come with you."

"What about Ron?" Harry asked while putting on a pair of shoes and grabbing his wand and a backpack he'd had ready for weeks

"Mr Weasley wasn't in his bed...we don't have time..."

"But..."

"Potter, GO!"

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Kateryna and her roommates were woken up by a loud banging on their door.

"Girls open up! NOW!"

Daphne got out of her bed to unlock the door, all of the boys stormed in.

Kat rubbed her eyes tiredly.

"What is happening? What time is it?"

"You have to get dressed, he is coming?" Draco said

"What? Who? It's like two..." Said a sleepy Tracey

"The Dark Lord! He is coming here!"

"WHAT?!" All the girls exclaimed

"Why?" Kat asked worriedly.

In a second Draco was by her side hugging her. "It's okay Kat he won't hurt you I promise"

Kat stared at him

"I know Draco, I guessed he wasn't coming to hurt me..."

"How?" Pansy interrupted "How? Will he get in? There are wards!"

"The ministry is ours..." Greg said, not an ounce of happiness in his voice "We won."

Kat didn't hear anything anymore because everything went black.

**AN: DUNDUNDUN! I hope the Ron-Astoria fling was unexpected, can anyone tell me what charm they forgot. Anyways my original plan was to get rid of ron by making him cast an Imperius on Kat and be sent to Azkaban but I don't feel like Ron is that evil...Anyways hope you guys are happy that Kat isn't going totally evil! Tell me how you liked it in your REVIEWS By the way who is your favorite couple and what do you think of Crabbe and Luna ? :D**


	9. Chapter 9

**AN: Don't hate me PLEASE! Last week was Hell for me and literally disgusted me from writing because I had to turn in several essays on the same day and it was WAY too much typing for me (my fingers still hurt!) then I got sick and was literally a zombie in bed... I know it's no justification for not updating but I really needed to do good in school this week, I mean this year of my high school career pretty much determines my future so I had to keep my grades up!**

**Anyways as you might have understood from this rant, this chapter was a bitch to write (especially since I suffered writer's block like a 1000 words in...) so you guys should totally review (even if it's just to sold me for being late :p) because I'm really curious about what you guys think.**

**Sooo this chapter has a pretty fast pacing and it jumps between points of view pretty fast because A LOT is happening, both in the character's head and like in the real world (oh and I forgot to mention it but I think you guessed that most of what's coming next is completely AU!)**

**Anyways! Read, Review and Enjoy! (Not necessarily in that order :D**

Kat's hand flew to her mouth

"Oh my god!"

"Get ready." Draco said harshly "You girls are leaving!"

"What? Why?" Pansy exclaimed

"Yeah why..." Kat whispered "We won, didn't we..."

Draco grabbed her arm pulling her to him, pressing his forehead against her he whispered.

"There are things that will happen here you really don't want to see..."

Realization hit Kat as her mouth opened in shock

"They're going to slaughter them aren't they...the muggleborns and blood traitors? Daphne said in a small shaking voice.

Theo nodded stiffly

"You guys can't stay here!" Tracey squeaked "You guys can't take part in this!"

Kat looked around at the grave faces of the boys and understood what they were mentally getting ready for, her eyes went wide and she started sobbing uncontrollably.

"Draco! You..you can't stay! You can't do this! You can't hurt anyone..." She started out screaming but as she gained a fuller understanding of the situation her voice lowered to a bare whisper. Lifting her head her gaze met her brother's.

"Ceph...please..." she whispered desperately.

Ceph stepped forward and hugged his shaking and sobbing little sister. Kat wasn't the only one crying anymore, Daphne was desperately clutching Theo's shirt whispering "You can't hurt anyone" over and over again. Millie was hugging Greg whispering softly in his ear. Letting go of Ceph Kat turned to Draco, allowing Tracey to rush into Ceph's arms for comfort.

"Draco" She whispered, she said so little but her eyes told another story. She was afraid for him, for every single one of them and she was worried sick at the idea that these boys, her boys, might damage their soul.

"I know..." Draco answered "I'll do my best to allow people to get out but I have to keep up appearances...I can't afford to disappoint Him"

Kat nodded, knowing he was right. These last few months had made her familiar with the concept of not having a choice.

"Let's go girls." Pansy said grimly.

The girls started walking out of the room when Blaise grabbed Pansy's arm and kissed her thoroughly.

"If I die in this battle" he whispered "I want you to know I love you, I've loved you for way too long."

Pansy blushed uncontrollably, standing on her toes she kissed him softly

"I know..." she whispered back

Leaving the room the girls went to the fireplace. Daphne pulled out a little phial filled with floo powder.

"Where are we going?" Kat asked.

"Malfoy Manor" Pansy whispered grimly "Our parents will be there"

Kat's eyes widened as memories of her last time at the manor flooded her mind. Kat wanted nothing more than to run back in her room and cry for a while but Daphne was already pouring the floo on the fire and pushing her gently towards it.

"Malfoy Manor" Kat said resignedly

* * *

Draco was not a coward, or a least that was what he liked to think. However in that precise moment he was terrorized, he never really liked members of other houses but he would never hurt them the way he was expected to in that precise moment. All around him, hell was breaking loose. Death eaters were swarming the castle torturing anyone that crossed their path and capturing prisoners that they were gathering in the great hall. "Crucio!" Alecto Carrow screamed. Her curse hitting a first year Ravenclaw. "Where is your common room!" she kept on shouting at the terrorized little girl.

"Oh you don't want to talk? Fine then... all the more fun for me" The hideous death eater cackled "Avada Ke..."

"Alecto Stop!" Draco screamed "You...you can't do that! She...she might be a pureblood! Someone from a family that the Dark Lord might have use for!"

Draco didn't even know what he was saying but the idea that this little girl would die if he didn't do anything was enough to motivate him to stand up to the older woman.

Alecto huffed annoyedly "Fine..." grabbing the girl's arm roughly she pulled her towards the great hall "If you're a mudblood you and I are going to have fun..." Draco heard her say. He could not repress a shudder at what awaited the girl if her blood wasn't pure.

Walking through the hallways he made a point to ignore the majority of students that were trying to hide in the corners. While walking up a secluded corridor towards the Gryffindor common room, Draco heard a desperate feminine cry. Walking towards the noise, Draco discovered a sobbing Parvati Patil clutching her bloodied chest. He could make out a very distinctive bite mark through the ripped fabric. A werewolf bite. Looking up at the moon, Draco realized it was completely full. They let a transformed, uncontrollable werewolf loose in here! He thought. What was Voldy thinking?

"Hey...Patil" He whispered. The girl lifted her gaze, when she recognized him her eyes widened in fear and she tried to make a run for it but Draco grabbed her arm.

"Please" She whimpered

Looking left and right for anyone coming, Draco leaned closer to the girl and whispered in her ear

"There is a secret passage between the statue of the one eyed witch, not far away from here... tap it with your wand...You'll arrive into Honeydukes cellar, you can apparate from there"

The girl eyed him suspiciously

"What do you want Malfoy?"

She definitely did not trust him.

"I want you to never mention this to anyone. You got out by yourself if anyone asks you. If you run into other students, take them with you."

Parvati nodded and started walking in the direction of the statue.

"Hoy Patil!" She turned around slowly "Take care of that bite mark as soon as you can..."

She nodded and disappeared around the corner.

Draco continued walking towards the common room. Arriving in front of what used to be the entrance he could not help but frown at the sight of the ripped portrait, the fat lady was whimpering in her frame, the huge lacerations in the canvas making her almost unrecognizable.

Stepping inside Draco couldn't help but be shocked at how much damage the other death eaters had done. There wasn't a single piece of furniture that hadn't been ripped to shreds, burned or broken. The bust of Godric Gryffindor had been seriously disfigured and the words "Little Bitch" were carefully carved into the mantelpiece under the portrait of Dumbledore, probably his aunt's handy work. Draco scowled, he might have not liked the Gryffindor but Hogwarts was his home and it angered him that anyone might damage the school in such a way. He was about to leave when he heard hushed whispers coming from one of the staircases.

"Brown you have to go, they'll get you at some point and not all Death Eaters are gentleman."

whispered a male voice that seemed extremely familiar. Draco could also hear the muffled sobbing of a girl. Pulling out his wand he started going up the stairs and found himself face to face with

"Theo!" Draco breathed

His friend looked completely panicked

"Drake you can't say anything..." he whispered pleadingly

Draco furrowed his brows,he had never expected Theo to betray the dark lord like this but he would never condemn him by breathing a word about what he just witnessed. Approaching the sobbing girl he pulled her up.

"C'mon Lavender, I just got your friend out..."

Theo,Draco and Lavender made their way across the hallways. The later disillusioned so that no one would notice her. Arriving in front of the one-eyed witch passageway Draco tapped it with is wand and ushered the girl inside. Before closing the passage he locked eyes with her and whispered.

"Not a word about this..."

"Lavender nodded and disappeared behind the statue."

Theo was staring at his friend with wide eyes.

"Why?" He asked

"The same reason as you...I have a girl that wouldn't appreciate it if I slaughtered our classmate..." He whispered.

"You're lying" Theo answered "There's more to it isn't it?"

Draco lifted his gaze to meet his friend's

"Not here." He whispered back

* * *

Just as Kat stepped out of the fire she was wrapped in a warm embrace.

"Oh Dear! I finally get to meet you! Draco wrote me so much about you!"

A very disoriented Kat found herself face to face with a smiling Narcissa Malfoy. As her friends stepped one by one out of the fire, Narcissa hugged and kissed them in the same way.

"Poor Dears you must be terrorized" Narcissa cooed while hugging Daphne tightly.

The girls seemed to be used to this treatment because they merely smiled and returned the tight hugs. Kat couldn't say she wasn't surprised, in her past life she had met Narcissa Malfoy only a handful of time but they had been sufficient to classify the women as distant, frigid and slightly snobbish. The woman standing before her was nothing like that, she could barely suppress a grin at seeing the girls and her skin was tinged pink with excitement.

Daphne and Kat locked eyes and the later had a lot of difficulty stifling a giggle when Daph pointed at Narcissa and winked exaggeratedly while mouthing.

"She's crazier than her sister!"

And Kat had to agree, Narcissa was able to make them forget about their boys by torturing them for hours on end. That women had an obsession with hair and had booked a full body wax for all of the girls. Innocently, Kat had assumed that wizarding waxing would hurt less than the muggle way. She was sorely mistaken, it hurt like a bitch! Ignoring her future daughter in law's pleas for mercy Narcissa told the lady to "Take it all off!".

When the torture session ended, it was a wincing Kat that made her way back to the small boudoir. Kat scoffed mentally. Seriously, who said boudoir nowadays? She thought as she pushed the door open. Inside, the girls and Narcissa seemed to be absorbed in a very serious discussion. Nevermind, a discussion, about who was the most eligible bachelor at Hogwarts.

"My Draco." Narcissa said, not changing her position "I mean right now he is totally unavailable" she said mischievously shooting a wink in Kat's direction "But he definitely was the most attractive, charming and wealthy bachelor out there!"

"Theo is a hundred times better!" Daphne said between giggles

"Pity he's very much taken" Narcissa replied with a knowing smile.

Daphne blushed slightly at the remark but continued defending her boyfriend.

The night went on happily and before they knew it, it was morning. At that point the fear started to settle in and light conversation coupled with sweets weren't enough anymore. Pansy kept on whispering "Make them come back unharmed" over and over again while Millie kept shooting glances towards the window and the floo mumbling intelligible swear words.

"Manners Millie" Narcissa said weakly as the teenager spoke a little bit louder than usual. Pansy burst out laughing after a few seconds when she finally figured out that what at first sounded like a series of grunts and hisses was supposed to mean "Fucking useless goon, didn't even say goodbye...Better not die..."

"Real classy Mills!" Tracey chimed from her armchair next to the fireplace.

Kat couldn't help but smile at the grimace Millie shot their way

* * *

"Please! No more! I don't know anything...please!"

The crying girl was rewarded with a slap and another crucio.

"Where is Harry Potter?" Arcturus Nott repeated

"I don't know!" The girl sobbed once more

They had been going at it for hours. Theo's father would ask a question to a student and when he or she was unable to give an answer he started the torturing.

"We're done with you!" Arcturus spat "Does anyone want her? She's pretty enough!"

The look on the girl's face was one of sheer terror as Fenrir Greyback stepped forward and grabbed her roughly by the arm.

"Excellent choice Fenrir!" Arcturus said with a very obvious wink.

Theo and Draco exchanged a disbelieving and disgusted look and Draco couldn't help but notice his friend's clenched fists and set jaw.

"Theo don't!" He whispered "If you do I your safety will not be the only thing in jeopardy, think about Daphne"

His friend nodded stiffly but Draco could see that he had troubles musseling his anger at his father's action. Arcturus Nott had always been considered one of the most ruthless Death Eaters but neither Theo nor Draco had had a real demonstration of just how cruel he could be. From the other side of the hall, Blaise was looking at the scene, disbelief obvious on his face at the way some young girls were dragged away by Death Eaters, their intentions all too clear. Cepheus looked the most shocked, even though he had been part of the Dark Lord's ranks for the longest. The fact that Tracy would probably have been one of these girls surely contributing to his disturb, unlike the others, Tracy's parents weren't prominent Death Eaters making her a target.

Draco tried to zone out as another Crucio crossed the man's lips.

* * *

In the room of requirement, Ron Weasley was freaking out. Astoria was sobbing and shaking in fear as they heard the Death Eaters crucio students in the hallway and the ginger had no clue how to calm her down.

"Astoria you can go out there, they won't hurt you" He said trying to comfort her.

"You don't understand Ron, if they ever discover what happened between us I'll be killed or worse..." Her voice trailed off and her eyes glazed over.

"They will never know! I won't tell anyone and neither will you!"

"He'll know..." She whispered "He knows everything...It's treason Ron! Treason against my family and my allegiance to consort with a blood traitor!"

" You told me yourself, you're not a Death Eater!" He insisted

"Not Yet" The girl answered darkly

"Astoria there is no other solution! You can't stay here forever!"

"I want to stay with you! I thought you cared, that you actually saw me as more than a stupid slut!" She screamed "Obviously I was wrong!"

"Your family will disown you if you come with me! They'll hate you more than they ever will, even if they discover what happened! You won't be safe anymore.

Furiously wiping a tear from her cheek, Astoria lifted her gaze.

"You don't understand do you?" the pureblood girl whispered

She got up slowly, making her way towards the door.

"Astoria wait! You'll come with me!"

Ron begged realizing he didn't want her to go out there and potentially get hurt.

"You can stay with me..." He repeated "I'll keep you safe..."

Astoria felt her heart swell as a smile spread across her face.

* * *

"Fuck!" Harry repeated as he replayed the night in his head over and over again from his bed at Grimmauld Place. Ginny rubbing soothing circles on his back.

"This is really bad Ginny" Harry whispered

"Thank you Captain Obvious...I really don't know what you're talking about, I think it's pretty awesome that snake face is livening things up around here" she answered trying to lighten the mood. Harry couldn't help but chuckle at his girlfriend's dubious sense of humour.

"Do you think she'll be alright?" He asked looking up at the redhead

"Kat?"

He nodded in response. "I didn't get to say how sorry I was..." he whispered.

Ginny squeezed his hand.

"I think she knows how you feel Harry, she'll be alright..."

The couple stayed in the same position for hours, not speaking anymore. Both of them absorbed in their own thoughts. The silence was broken after a while by a noise coming from downstairs. Ginny and Harry jumped up wands in hand as they silently made their ways towards the stairs and found themselves face to face with...

* * *

In the Great Hall of Hogwarts the torturing was still going on. Draco thought he found a way to tune out of it, to ignore the cries of agony and the sobs of the victims. That was until a pretty blond girl was brought onto the platform. Draco's eyes widened and his gaze flickered to Vince.

"Drak that's Luna Lovegood!" Theo said, his voice hushed but frantic

"I know Theo..." Draco whispered back to his panicked friend

"Vince will freak!"

Theo was right. Crabbe looked absolutely furious and seemed to be doing his best to not lunge at McNair that was currently the one torturing the students.

"He won't hold it together for long..." Theo added "He's going to do something bad and it'll condemn both him and her.

Once again Theo was spot on. As soon as the first crucio crossed McNair's lips, Vince made to step forward.  
"Imperio" Draco whispered aiming his wand towards his friend. "I'm so sorry Crabbe" he whispered a his friend stopped mid stride, a pained expression on his face as he tried to fight the curse ordering him not to move and not to scream.

Draco didn't know how long it lasted. The questioning seemed to be unusually lengthy as McNair would keep on asking "Where is Harry Potter" and "Do you swear allegiance to the Dark Lord?"

To both questions, Luna gave vague airy answers such as "Probably of looking for Heliopaths..." and "My allegiance is to Stubby Boardman". Not once did she cry or beg for mercy. Draco was impressed by how resistant the girl was., when finally the end of the questioning came and Mcnair asked:"Alright who wants her?". Draco couldn't help but shudder, knowing that the girl his friend liked would be soiled in that way.

"Draco release the spell?" THeo hissed.

"What? Why...?"

"Just do it!" Theo snapped.

Draco lifted the spell of his friend and a mere seconds later Crabbe shouted.

"I want her!" Walking forward to take Luna's arm.

The smirk on McNair's face was disturbing as he said.

"Alright young Crabbe, have fun!"

A few of the older Death Eaters snickered and Crabbe senior patted his son on the back as he walked by, dragging Luna with him.

* * *

Vince made his way out of the great hall as fast as he could only stopping once he was far away enough for no Death Eaters to walk in on him and Luna. Turning towards the younger girl he whispered.

"Luna we have to get you out of here! Fast!"

The blonde lifted her big blue eyes to look at him.  
"Thank you Vincent." She said with a smile "Thank you for saving me!"

"You don't need to thank me Luna, at least not until you're safe..."

She smiled at him

"I don't know how to get out..."

"I do!" He answered. Quickly he started dragging her across the hallways towards one of the secret passageways of the castle. As he walked he couldn't help but think about what he was doing, he was betraying everything his family believed in. Forsaking his ancestor's legacy, all for a simple girl. Vincent didn't regret any of it, when Draco's curse had hit him he had had to endure the sight of the girl he liked getting tortured over and over again. A little part of him had died seeing her that way, weak and crumpled to the ground.

"Here we are." He said stopping in front of the secret passage

"Thank you Vincent..." Luna whispered, a smile on her lips as he handed her back her wand.

Vince was about to turn away when a soft hand on his arm stopped him. Before he knew it, Luna's lips were on his. It was a short kiss, it was finished as fast as it started. But it was beautiful, more beautiful than what Vincent Crabbe had ever experienced in his life. When her soft scent faded from the air and the lingering feeling from her lips on his started to go away, she was long gone. Bringing a finger to his lips, Vince had only one thing to say:

"Wow..."

* * *

"You're Back!" Pansy's scream woke up all of the girls as one by one the boys stepped out of the floo. First came Blaise that was quickly pulled down in a scorching kiss by Pansy. After him came Goyle that got violently pushed down on a chair and lectured by an angry Millie. Quickly though he was able to calm her down and before long the couple was snogging just as passionately as Pansy and Blaise. Third came Ceph, Kat was about to rush to him and tell him how glad she was the he survived all of this when Tracey jumped right in front of her and placed a firm kiss on his mouth, pulling away the brunette laughed at the gobsmacked face of the boy she had just kissed.

"What?" She said "Everyone else was doing it!"

"Oh I'm not complaining" Ceph replied huskily as he sat down on the couch, pulling Tracey on his lap. When Theo came in, Kat thought her eardrums would burst as Daphne let out an extremely high pitched noise and tackled her boyfriend to the ground peppering his face with kisses. Completely oblivious to the whole room that had turned to stare at them and was currently snickering at Daphne's obvious lack of self-restraint. Finally there he was, Kat didn't know how to react as he stepped out of the fireplace as handsome as ever.

"You're back she breathed..." as he made her way towards her, his gaze never leaving her face.

Without answering he pulled her to him and kissed her over and over again, his fingers tangling in her hair as their tongues intertwined. When finally they pulled away gasping for breath he whispered.

"I'll always come back to you..."

Kateryna swatted his arm at what she thought was his way to make fun of her, she had no idea how serious he was being.

* * *

"Ron? Greengrass?" Ginny exclaimed as she came face to face with the couple.

"What the hell is going on?" Harry asked, obviously shocked at the unlikely couple standing in front of him. He couldn't say he wasn't confused as he stared at his legendarily Slytherin-Hating best friend's hold on the girls waist.

"It seems we have a lot of explaining to do..." Ron sighed as he made his way towards the Grimmauld place living room. Slowly pulling Astoria along as she reluctantly followed him deeper into this unknown house.

"You don't say..." His sister mumbled, staring disbelievingly at the couple.

* * *

As they sat all together in the living room, the Slytherin all had the same thought going through their head: How much would they have to sacrifice for their family's beliefs?

Daphne was looking at her boyfriend deep in thought\\. His father was a cruel Death eater and she feared that the man she loved might be influenced by his family, she couldn't lose him.

Millie, Pansy and Tracey all looked at their respective men, how many more nights, they thought, would they have to wait in fear while they were out there. How many more times would they come back broken from the Death Eater meetings?

Blaise, Ceph, Theo and Goyle all thought the same thing: What they had witnessed today wasn't human, they didn't want to end up that way. They all remembered the look of despair on Crabbe's face as Luna was being tortured and they all imagined their loved ones in that position.

Looking at the Dark Mark upon her wrist, Kat couldn't help but wonder just how much she had changed since that summer morning when she discovered who she truly was. She hated the tattoo upon her arm and she hated that it was the only way she could protect the people she loved. Kat was begging for another way, a way that wouldn't corrupt them, a way that would be just a little bit easier. Draco hoped for the same thing, he was sick of all of this. Sick of being afraid for everyone he loved. Sick of being forced to torture innocents. Sick of having his soul ripped apart because of one maniac. Looking at the girl he had grown to like, maybe even love, he couldn't help but wish that soon all of this would be over. He wanted to be a better man for her, for their future together. Narcissa Malfoy was looking over the group, understanding their inner turmoil. In that moment she made herself a promise: Her son would come first, his safety and happiness would come before the Dark Lord and before her own life. Her son's future and happiness was more important than this cruel war.

**AN: Sooo what did you guys think? Tell me all about it in the reviews ! Anyways who is your favorite couple !? Isn't it cool that the death eater teens are starting to realize just how bad their paren't allegiange is :p**

**PS-I finally figure out how to insert horizontal lines in the text!**


	10. Chapter 10

**AN: CHAPTER 10! I can't believe I already wrote that much! Fun fact, on Thursday my story got 1k hits so that was super exciting (even though I only got like 5 reviews GRRR! ) so that was exciting! Anyways soon we're going to start getting more action and stuff but this chapter is a little more fluffy that the last (haha no kidding the last one was pretty horrible with all the torturing and stuff. I want to give a massive shout out to my favorite anonymous reviewer 't' that always has the nicest/most helpful reviews which really keep the story going so thanks!**

"Ron I can't do this anymore!" Astoria whined "Your friends HATE me!"

Ron hugged the distressed girl tightly to his chest as he smoothed her hair.

"They just don't know you..."

She looked up at him quirking a brow.

"I think they hate me..."

"They don't sweetheart I swear, you'll grow on them just give it time."

The girl looked at him with an incredulous expression on her face, letting out a sarcastic laugh she said:

"And why would they I'm just some death eater's spawn to them!"

Ron looked shocked at Astoria's depreciative words

"No you aren't! You're my girlfriend!" He said.

Astoria's head shot up, her eyes wide and mouth open in shock.

"What?"

When Ron realized what he just said, his first impulse was to apologize profusely for assuming that she was his girlfriend but he quickly decided against it. Pulling the flabbergasted girl to him he whispered.

"Yeah...My girlfriend"

He couldn't believe his own words but they felt right, they felt like it was meant to be.

* * *

"Kat that's not how you hold a Quaffle!"

Blaise said exasperatedly. It had been about a week since the occupation of Hogwarts and school had not resumed yet. Since all of their parents were 'busy' all of the Slytherins had decided to stay at Malfoy Manor where Narcissa welcomed them with open arms, happy to have girls to talk with. Over the last few days, Draco and Blaise had started trying to teach Kat Quidditch because Blaise kept on arguing that she had a 'good build to be a Chaser." Unfortunately for the Slytherin team, Kat was not making much progress and she didn't expect to be part of the team any time soon to the great despair of Draco who needed to replace one of his chasers and would be oh so happy to share a locker room with Kat.

"Hold your own damn Quaffle!" Kat huffed in exasperation throwing the red leather ball at her friend's face. Daphne and Pansy erupted in a fit of giggles when the ball collided with the dark skinned boy's nose.

"Hey that was a much better throw!" Draco said from behind her "Next time aim at the hoop and imagine it's Zabini's face!"

Kat glared at him for a second trying her best to scowl at him and repress her smile but failing miserably. Draco smirked at her:

"I know I'm just so hilarious"

She rolled her eyes at him and was pleased to notice that every single girl in the audience was doing exactly the same thing.

"You have a very weird definition of hilarious Drakey-Poo!" Pansy said while snatching the quaffle from his hands.

"Yeepee! Let's play Girls against boys!" Daphne said throwing her hands up in the hair with glee and making Kat cringe at the idea of letting go of her own broom that way.

"Hey not fair!" Crabbe said "There's no way we'll win!Ceph won't touch Tracye or Kat and will punch anyone who does and same goes for Draco with Kat and Theo with Daphne...How are we expected to win?"

The guys seemed to contemplate the idea for a second until Theo said

"You can hurt Daphne as much as you want" with a wink to his girlfriend he turned his broom towards the hoops and started flying around them. Draco nodded his agreement and said "As long as you don't ruin her pretty face!" which earned him a kick from Ceph and middle finger from Kat.

"Classy Dolohov, classy..." he said "I didn't know your goody two shoes self would know about such a rude gesture..."

Kat decided not to start arguing with him, it was a lost cause instead she said.

"Well I guess I'll be a chaser!"

The game was a harsh one, the boys didn't take it slow at all and none of them went easy on the girls. At some point the game degenerated when Greg and Millie started arguing because he flung a bludger her way and " Almost hurt her!" but the problem was easily fixed when frail little Tracey took the beater's club from a flabbergasted Crabbe and swung a bludger in the direction of the bickering couple successfully ending the fight. Kat used the ongoing confusion and laughter to score for the first time ever. In the mean time, Draco had caught the snitch that Daphne was supposed to be looking for but she was too busy blowing kisses at her boyfriend in order to distract him to notice...

* * *

The Order of the Phoenix was sitting in the kitchen table at Grimmauld Place, debating loudly on the best course of action.

"Harry you have to hide! You cannot go out there anymore!" Molly pleaded as Harry let everyone know that he was planning on destroying the horcruxes.

"Molly there is no other way!" Harry said "I have to do it! Dumbledore wanted me to!"

"Dumbledore made mistakes Harry, trusting Snape for one!" Lupin said.

The room fell silent as everybody remembered Snape betrayal when he had started cursing some of his students and blasted the door of Hogwarts open letting the Death Eaters in.

"By the way what is she doing here?" Molly asked eyeing the girl sitting next to her son warily.

No one had mentioned Astoria yet and the young girl cringed as she noticed the hostile look that half of the people around the room were shooting her way.

"She is my girlfriend and is totally trustworthy!" Ron said putting a protective arm around Astoria's waist. She smiled up at him, she still couldn't believe it everytime he said these words. But her happy expression quickly faded when she remembered why she was here in the first place.

"I have nowhere else to go..." she whispered, tears welling up in her eyes realizing it might be years before she would get to see Daphne again.

Understandment seemed to wash over Molly's feature as she got closer to the girl and hugged her.

"Sweetheart don't think about it! Here at the order we believe in second chances, you'll be alright!"

Astoria smiled weakly and returned the hug.

"Anyways Harry you aren't going." Molly said firmly.

Once again Ron interrupted

"Mom he is and I'm going with him!"

"Me too!" Ginny said not wanting to be left out.

Molly was about to open her mouth when Arthur motioned her to sit down.

"Molly this is not your decision, if Ginny and Ron wish to follow Harry you should be proud of them for acting like real Gryffindors!"

Whispers of agreement circulated around the room broken by Astoria's voice.

"I'm going too then!"

No one reacted to the news but a few nodded their approval at the slytherin's courage before resuming their conversation on other strategic actions to be taken.

Ron turned towards her with wide eyes.

"You are?!"

"Yes where you go I'll go, I don't have any reason to stay around here with strangers..."

"But its dangerous!" He whispered to her so as not to interrupt the ongoing conversation.

"Well why should I be afraid I have three brave Gryffindor with me..." she said with a smirk "Beside you might do with a little more brains since granger is not here!"

"What are you talking about Greengrass?" He said in mock anger "I am very proficient in ancient runes and arithmancy!"

Astoria scoffed at his obvious lie.

* * *

"Did Theo tell you anything about what happened during the battle?"

Millie asked while painting her toe nails a bold pink. It had been days since the battle but none of the boys had mentioned anything since then.

"No he doesn't want to mention it, he always says that its better if I don't know..." Daphne answered while applying a generous layer of 'Super volume wicked witch's mascara' to her top lashes.

"I looove these new products!" Tracey said in a sing-song voice walking into the room her arms filled with lipgloss, lotions and self-applying makeup palettes. She stopped skipping as soon as she noticed her friend's serious faces.

"Oh are we talking about why I think we're talking about?"

"What do you think we're talking about?"

"Well the DLFW!" Tracey said as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"What the hell is that?" Kat asked getting out of the bathroom

"DLFW? Dark Lord Fighting Witches!" Tracey "Duh!"

"You're not being serious..." Pansy said from the bed "If we're actually doing this we're not referring to it as DLFW!"

Tracey seemed to ponder her remark for a few second before her face lit up again

"What about "Attractive Dark Lord Fighting Womanly Witches? ADLFWW?"

"God Tracey it's not funny!" Daphne huffed

"You're right..."Tracey said her face darkening "Things are getting worse every day!"

The girls nodded in agreement.

"Ceph told me about it" She whispered breaking the silence once again "It was horrible!"

The girls turned to her wide eyed.

"You have to tell us Trace!" Millie said sitting next to her friend

"It's bad girls!" Tracey whispered "Ceph was shocked. They...they tortured every single student for information and when none could give it to them... they tortured them some more. And the girls...the rape them!" She collapsed sobbing " I was friend with some of these girls! What if that happened to Padma? Or that girl that sat next to me in potion?"

None of her friends could talk they were too shocked for words.

"Ginny..." Kat whispered terrorized

"She's fine Kat, Ceph told me. If they had caught Potter's girlfriend they'd use her as a bait...we'd know about it."

"What about Luna?" Daphne asked "Vince really liked her!"

"You can't talk about it to anyone..." Tracey's voice was barely audible now "But he got her out...Vince saved her."

"This is way too horrible!" Millie whispered and the room fell silent once again.

Their thoughts were interrupted by a knock on the door, swearing Tracey grabbed her wand and performed a charm to remove all traces of crying from her face.

"Come in!" Daphne shouted

Draco walked in closely followed by Theo.

"Girls are you ready to go?" He asked "Cause everybody's waiting for you!"

"Yeah we're coming" Kat said getting up.

Draco wrapped an arm around her waist and led her out of the room happily not listening to her protest about having to wait for her friends.

"God you're so hot when you're angry..." He said winking at her.

"Draco stop trying to get a rise out of me or I swear I'll retaliate!" She said as they arrived in the entrance hall. Leaning closer to her Draco smiled and whispered

"I'd love to see you try..."

Noticing that Vince,Greg and Theo were within earshot, Kat did not have to think twice about it as she exclaimed in a really shrill voice:

"Oh Drakey-poo don't worry I won't tell anyone about your gender issues, it's going to be alright!"

Greg, Vincent and Theo started laughing uncontrollably at their friend's face.

'Please. Please don't ever call me that again..." Draco said "Pansy traumatized me with that name for far too long!"

"Aww Drakey-Poo you shouldn't try to anger an adversary so much smarter than you are..." Kat said with a sly grin

"Whatever..."Draco grumbled

"He'll make one very submissive husband!" Blaise said laughing

"That's a lie." Draco said trying to keep his cool "I'll be the most dashing husband to ever walk this earth!" Kat couldn't help but smile at his indignated expression

"Nope!" Daphne chimed barging in "Theo will be the sexiest and most dashing husband to ever walk this earth !"

"Are you proposing or something?" Theo asked with a knowing smile

"Why? No! Are you?" Daphne asked looking slightly bewildered

All the girls except for Kat 'aweed' and started whispering excitedly. Kat always forgot that in the wizarding world people married very early, she always assumed that her engagement to Draco was unique when it was in fact a rather common occurrence. "They barely been going out for a couple months..."

"There's no one I would like to marry more than you sweetheart!" Theo said getting down on one knee. "Unfortunately I don't have a ring yet but will you marry me?"

Daphne looked at him for a second smirking as he waited down on one knee. Theo raised an eyebrow at her urging her to answer.

"Guess!" She said with a smile.

Theo simply got up and kissed her passionately. The guys started wolf whistling and screaming obscenities while Pansy shouted "Get a room!"

In that little moment of fun, Kat could almost forget that there was a war going on and that people were dying. Because she was surrounded by people that cared about each other and were willing to stick together no matter what. She couldn't help but smile when Daphne broke the kiss with a smile and said.

"Could we get any cuter?"

* * *

In the bathroom of Grimmauld place, Astoria was counting weeks on her fingers. One,two,three, four,five, six. Her eyes widened.

"Two weeks late..." She whispered "I'm never late..."

Covering her face with her hand she started crying.

"Shit..." she whispered "What am I going to do?"

* * *

"Mhhh. Tschich ich shhho 'ood" Greg said stuffing his mouth with Indian food.

Kat was smiling proudly, she had done the impossible and gotten her friends to go out into Muggle London and they were loving it. at first, they had been a little reluctant but a single ride on the subway had changed everything.

_6h prior..._

"Kat where do I put this stupid piece of paper?" Draco asked looking at his ticket.

She smiled pointing at the turnstile.

Looking confused Draco inserted the ticket and walked through carefully retrieving the ticket on the other side and examining it carefully.

"Guys act normal the muggles are starring" Tracey said, she was the one that was the most comfortable in the muggle word.

"Are you sure this is safe?" Pansy asked looking slightly worried "I mean who would shoot a giant tube through a tunnel?"

"Pansy you fly around on sticks all the time you have nothing to worry about." Kat said with a smile.

The ride had been one of the most enjoyable experience ever for Kat even though she had had to stop Grec and Vince from sticking their arms out to stop the train.

"Guys this isn't the Knight bus!" She whispered "Muggles are going to think you're suicidal or something!"

Once on the train, the guys had started examining everything from the fabric of the seats to the cleanliness of the windows.

"Why do you need windows if all you see is darkness?" Theo noted.

"I like it!" Cepheus said, it's more comfortable than Portkey travelling.

"But slower..." Kat noted.

"And dirtier!" Milli added pointing at a discarded bag of chips on the floor.

The group of purebloods wrinkled their noses in disgust much to the amusement of Kat.

"God sometimes you are just so fragile..." she said with a laugh "You're lucky you never walked into a public school's bathroom!"

Her friends shot her a confused look so she decided to drop it.

Deciding to take her friends to Piccadilly Circus getting of the train she pulled the friends happily onto the escalators relishing in the view of the four pureblood looking slightly taken aback by these strangely moving stairs that reminded them of hogwarts.

"How do they get stairs to move without magic?" Draco asked her wrapping an arm around her waist and resting his chin on the top of her head.

"Science." Kat said matter of factly.

"How strange Draco mumbled in her hair.

* * *

Tracey had never been a Muggle-Hater, she hadn't been a muggle lover either but she had never wished them dead or enslaved. She as merely thought of them as slightly lesser being, unable to do magic and knowing close to nothing about anything. When Tracey caught her first glimpse of Piccadilly Circus, everything changed. The flashing lights everywhere, the adds, the shops full of pretty muggle dresses and the restaurants and cafes everywhere.

"I love it!" She said squeezing Cephs hand that was looking as pleasantly surprised as he was a huge grin gracing his handsome face.

"This calls for a kiss!" Ceph said leaning down and softly pressing his lips to his girlfriends.

"This place is better than Diagon Alley!" Pansy whispered looking around at the crazy traffic and double-decked red busses.

Draco was silent looking around with wide eyes. Squeezing Kat's waist tightly, a small bewildered smile playing on his lips.

"Do you like it?" Kat asked to Draco leaning her head against his chest.

Tracey couldn't help but smile happily when the blonde answered

"I love it..."

Kat pulled Draco to her whispering a barely audible

"I'm glad"

and kissing him passionately.

Tracey looked at her own boyfriend with a pleased look and said.

"Your sister is definitely getting over the engagement isn't she?"

"I thinks so..." Ceph answered looking unsure

"That's good for them Ceph, at least they won't have a loveless marriage like most purebloods do..."

Tracey felt sad knowing that someday Ceph might marry a girl from some important pureblood family and leave her to marry a guy she'd most likely never met before. Ceph seemed to sense her change of mood as he tilted her chin up and whispered.

"I know I won't...Once this war is over, once everything is better, once we're safe I'll marry the girl I love and right now that girl is standing right in front of me..."

Tracey chewed at her lower lip.

"I still can't understand why you're interested in me..." she whispered looking around to notice that the others were all having a moment with their significant other apart from Vince that was staring into space with his hands in his pockets.

"Remember that time in your fourth year when you slapped a guy from Durmstrang because he called Millie fat? I'll always remember that..."

"Yeah but you couldn't be there you were at Durmstrang!

"Sweetheart I was a Durmstrang student I obviously came to see what we thought would be Krum's overwhelming win..."

"Well you got that one wrong." Tracey laughed

* * *

"Oh my god you guys have to taste all of this candy!" Kat said as she filled plastic cups with all kinds of colorful gummies.

She had dragged the whole group to the last floor of Hamleys and was currently trying to fit every single kind of candy in the extra large sized cup. One she was satisfied she lead everyone to pay for the food and back outside into the crowded streets towards Leicester square where there were far less tourists and a few benches next to the small park. Sitting down on one of the benches she stated pulling sweets out of her bag.

"You guys have to taste marshmallows! I can't believe you've never had them! And cupcakes god I love cupcakes!"

The afternoon was spent that way eating sweets and laughing while telling childhood introduced everyone to the game of 'truth or dare' and was surprised to discover that Blaise's first crush happened to be Padma Patil and that he used to have a stuffed bunny named Candy. That confession causing everyone to burst out laughing. Of course everyone had their fair share of secrets to confess to and Hermione had to confess that her first crush had been Professor Lockhart causing the girls to giggle and Ceph and Draco to adopt near murderous expressions. The most shocking secret though, was Millie's confession of her own first crush: Snape. Which made her laugh nervously while a chorus of 'eww' rose from both the girls and the boys. After a while Kat decided to further the Muggle experience and take everyone in some typical teenage muggle stores.

"I want to see Muggle dresses!" Daphne chimed happily "I've never been a muggle department store.

"Oh I can take you in so many places! Topshop and Zara and H&amp;M and my favorite: Urban Outfitters. Oh and Victoria's Secret" Kat answered enthusiastically.

"Who's secret?" Theo asked distractedly

"I want to go there!" Pansy said "It looks exciting"

"You have no idea..." Kat said feeling herself blush at being in an underwear store with all of the boys.

Of course she wasn't disappointed by their reactions, as soon as they came next to the store Draco and Blaise started commenting on how attractive the muggles that were advertising the store looked. Crabbe was literally drooling in front of the very suggestive picture of one of the Victoria Secret's angel that was gracing the facade of the store. Walking by Tracey snapped his mouth shut laughing heartily before walking in followed by the others. Quickly the girls started looking at the pretty clothes and picking stuff out to try on. Kat was surprised by how easily the girls were adapting to the muggle world. The boys were another story, they kept walking around with wide eyes mumbling amongst them and pointing at some of the sexier attire with wide eyes. She even heard Goyle comment "I'm pretty sure witches don't wear that kind of stuff..." and shooting a glance at Millie that was happily filling her little shopping basket with very ose lingerie.

"So this is like an underwear store?" Daphne said shuffling through some nightgowns. Kat was about to answer when their conversation was interrupted by the boys coming whispering amongst them

"Hey what is this..." Draco said holding up something black, lacy and very very thin.

Kat never thought she was capable of blushing that much. She felt her whole face flush.

"Um that's a thong..."

"That doesn't help me one bit." Draco answered cocking an eyebrow.

"Um...It's like a normal underwear but with less...coverage..." Kat said feeling her face turn an even deeper shade of crimson and sincerely wishing they had never walked into the store.

Draco smirked at her obviously amused by her embarrassment.

"I can't visualize it, maybe you should try it on..."

"God you are exasperating!" Kat said throwing her hands up and rolling her eyes.

As she walked past him she heard Blaise say to Pansy

"Hey maybe you should buy these!"

Jumping onto her bed Tracey sighed happily.

"This was such a good day guys!"

"Yeah I never thought muggles would be that awesome!" Daphne said toying with the new pair of earrings she got during their trip.

"Seriously though, they're not that different from us!" Pansy said going through the numerous bag of clothes and products the girls had brought back from the trip.

Meanwhile Millie and Kat were happily devouring a freshly open pack of Marshmallows.

:How are you two still hungry? I mean that Indian food we had, I literally stuffed my face!" Daphne said.

"I love Muggles..." Millie said with a smile "Their food is wonderful!"

They had no idea that in the room next door the boys were having a very similar conversation. Before turning off the light Blaise made one last comment.

"You know guys I really liked these thong thingies, very creative..."

* * *

At Grimmauld Place Astoria was still lost in thought, she'd been wondering what to do for a full day now and had made her decision. She would still go with Ron , she couldn't stay here by herself while he was running around searching for Horcruxes. She wondered what her sister was thinking right now, did she know that she was gone. Would she hate her? Slipping into bed Astoria still couldn't believe what was happening. " Me" she whispered "Such a perfect little slytherin siding up with the 'right' side no one will believe it." letting out a small laugh Astoria tried to find some sleep.

* * *

At Malfoy manor, all of the teens were cluelessly sleeping not knowing that soon very soon life would get a lot more complicated than they already were.

**AN: SO? What do you think? Tell me all about it in the reviews and I'll try to get another chappie done by Wenesday but I'm not totally sure because I have to write my application article for my school's newspaper and I really really want to get in so yeah...**


	11. Chapter 11

**AN: HaaaaaaHHH don't throw a book at me for being so late! I am literally soo sorry, the past few weeks have been CRAZY. I've had my SAT and had to take 5 AP tests (aka HELL) and really haven't had that much time to write. If you people are or have been in high school, you know what I'm talking about... the end of the year is ALWAYS a crazy time and since this is my junior year its even crazier...Anyways I literally wasn't inspired for this chapter until yesterday night...I'v been trying to read lord of the rings lately and it didn't do for a great source of inspiration...now I want to write about handsome elves and stuff like that (which is NOT going to happen by the way because I'd just spend my time rambling on and on about how hot Orlando Bloom is as Legolas...)**

**Okay so now that I'm done justyfing myself I can move on to the actual chapted. Okay so in this chappie there is a lot that happens but at the same time not that much (that didn't make any sense but you'll see...) It's just a lot of talking and stuff but I''m covering IMPORTANT twists in the story... so there won't be much romance ****SPOILER* but there will be the L word uttered for the first time! *END OF SPOILER :D******

**so please READ AND REVIEW and don't hurt me!**

"Draco?" Kat whispered to her fiance "Draco I'm scared..."

"I know..." Draco whispered back "me too..."

Carefully inching towards Draco, Kat gulped at the sight of the castle that she had once loved. Now, from this boat that was too small for them it seemed gloomy and dangerous. Slowly Draco put an arm around her waist, careful not to rock the small barge too much.

"I don't understand why we have to go like the first years, these boats are too big for four fully grown seventh years..." Daphne whispered from the front of the small embarcation

"It's easier to control our movements this way." Theo said grimly "They got rid of the thestrals which makes it much harder to get in and out of the school. If we go by boat all the time its easy for them to see where we are..."

"I don't have a good feeling about this Draco" Kat whispered pressing even closer to him.

Kat couldn't explain how her relationship with Draco had developed. She still remembered the day she received the letter from her father, ordering her to marry a boy she used to hate. She didn't know how or when she had started to feel this pull towards him. She had always found him attractive even when he was at his most obnoxious, there was no denying his good looks. But it was more than that, in this messy and dark world he made her feel safe, almost happy. It wasn't love, Kat wasn't foolish enough to believe that true love would just spontaneously be born from their relationship but she had hope. She knew that one day they would love each other. It had to be that way. She couldn't have a loveless marriage...She wouldn't allow it to happen, she wanted to be happy.

Unfortunately, she knew that happiness wasn't an easy thing to come by in these dark times. Every night she would think about Harry and Ron. She didn't care how bad they had treated her, they were her friends and she couldn't bring herself not to care. And she knew that she wasn't the only one that had to hold back the tears when laying in the dark. Daphne's sister, Astoria, could not be found and her friends started fearing a kidnaping by the Order of the Phoenix. Daphne never talked about it but everyone could see the pain in her eyes, it had only gotten worse when the Dark Lord refused to send out a search party. Discontent was stirring amongst the younger Death Eaters and Kat could feel it, even Draco didn't seem to believe in the pureblood bull crap anymore. They were all acting. None of them really wanted to fight anymore, none of them wanted war and death but they knew better than to voice their opinion. And now, after a month in Malfoy Manor, relatively sheltered from it all, they were going back to Hogwarts. Kat dreaded the moment she would lay her eyes on the Great Hall. She wondered if she would feel the difference, the evil in the air, when she'd step into the familiar castle. Would she be able to focus on her studies like she used to? The olde her would have scoffed at such a question but she wasn't so sure anymore. She didn't feel as strong as she used to.

"Look! We're here!" Daphne said in a choked voice interrupting Kat's train of thoughts.

The castle stood in front of them, as it always had. It looked as it always did, not a stone seemed to have moved yet there was a coldness in the air, something that seemed to suck the happiness right out of you. Very quickly Kat realized that she hadn't imagined this feeling as Theo sucked in a breath and whispered.

"Is the Dark Lord serious? Dementors so close to the school, how will we manage to focus on anything."

Draco's grip on her shoulder tightened even more as they stepped of the small boat and started walking towards the castle led by a very grumpy looking Bellatrix.

"Your aunt is not happy Drake!" Theo said with a grin "I wonder why..."

Draco let out a chuckle

"Oh she is furious, you have no idea."

Bellatrix was indeed absolutely fuming. The Dark lord had appointed her as the new charms professor at the school and had requested she escort the student back to the school. Bellatrix could not refuse but her her reaction back at Malfoy Manor had been explosive enough to assume that if she had had a choice she would be very far away from here. Very quickly his aunt's displeasure had been turned into a joke by Draco and Blaise that had started using the expression "Pulling a Bellatrix" in reference to any angry reaction.

"Oh I think I do" Millie said as she caught up to them and pointed to the furious brunette that was currently blasting the doors of the castle open uttering a string of very colorful words as she strode into the entrance hall.

* * *

"Crucio!" Alecto Carrow shouted. The little girl collapsed to the ground sobbing.

"I'm sorry Professor!" she screamed between cries of agony "I...'m...s..o...soor-ahhhh!"

Another crucio hit the sobbing figure.

Kat couldn't watch anymore, this had been going on for them minutes and if it weren't for Draco's hand firmly restraining her hands she would have stopped this a long time ago.

"Kateryna please..." Draco whispered.

His voice was pleading, desperate.

"I can't watch this anymore..." Kat said pushing him away.

"ENOUGH!" She screamed running towards the little girl and ignoring Draco's attempts to hold her back.

"You've hurt her enough!" Kat repeated to the ugly women in front of her.

"Dolohov get out of the way now!" Alecto spat back, her face twisting into an ugly grimace in her fury.

"No! Can't you see she can't take anymore of these, Hogwarts is a school not a prison! You can't hurt her like that! She didn't do anything wrong."

"Out of the way! Now!" Alecto screamed shoving her away roughly and raising her wand once again. Another piercing "Crucio" was uttered but it never hit the small Hufflepuff, instead it hit Kateryna that had thrown herself in front of the innocent child not thinking about the consequences of her action.

All she could feel now was pain. Searing pain. Burning pain. Scorching pain. She screamed and fell to the ground under the strenght of the spell. She couldn't think straight anymore, her skin was being ripped away from her body and her bones were melting. In the distance she heard a vaguely familiar voice calling her name. It was unbearable, she wanted to cry but her eyes were dry.

Finally it stopped. She regained feeling in her body only to come face to face with a furious Alecto Carrow. Her eyes widened with fear for a second but she quickly remembered the matter at hand.

"Don't hurt her anymore..." She whispered.

"Kateryna that's enough!" Draco said running to her side and pulling her up. Still weakened by the cruciatus she was unable to resist.

"But..." She said trying to raise her voice to argue with her fiance.

"Kateryna." Draco said firmly pulling her away. Turning towards Alecto he said.

"Kateryna lost all sense for a second, think nothing of it..."

Kat wanted to say something more but was stopped by the pressure of Draco's hand on her arm. Swiftly Draco scooped her up into his arms and started walking towards the Slytherin common room. Kat knew better than to say anything but as soon as he put her down she erupted into hysterics shouts.

"How could you Draco? How DARE you make these decisions for me?! She was a kid Draco! A kid!."

"Kat..."

"No! Don't you dare 'Kat' me! We both know that it was the right thing to do, you shouldnt have helped me you should have helped her! You fucking coward" She was absolutely furious now and couldn't be stopped until Draco raised his voice, a rare occurrence lately.

" I don't give a flying fuck about the right thing Kat! I care about keeping you, keeping all of us safe! Do you know what will happen to your family if the Dark Lord suspects your loyalty? You're too precious to get rid off, Potter's ex-best-friend and all...but he'll retaliate. Ceph will suffer, Pansy, Daphne, Millie, Trace, Me, My family, your father..."

Kat felt tears well up in her eyes because she knew he was right. She knew that if she continued to act this way, people she truly cared about would suffer. But she was a good person and she couldn't help but care.

"She was just a child Draco...she didn't do anything wrong..." she said in a desperate voice.

Moving closer, Draco pulled her close to him, burying his face in her hair.

"Not everyone can be saved Kat..."

She tilted her head to look at him.

"Everybody should be saved. Everybody deserves it..." she said.

"I know." Draco said biting his lips. "But it's not in our power to save them all..."

To Kat's surprise a single, crystal clear tear leaked from his eye. Slowly she wiped it away with her thumb.

"You feel guilty." She said. It wasn't a question, she knew the answer.

Draco nodded. No one knew just how bad he felt lately. Not even Blaise or Theo. As a kid he had always assumed he'd make his father proud by being the perfect Malfoy. Now, he wasn't so sure anymore. Hiw whole world ad been turned upside down and he couldn't take the violence and pain anymore.

"Maybe you're right..." He said in a low voice "Maybe I'm a coward..."

Kat smiled a sad smile.

"But at least you protect those you care about Draco."

Pulling her to him, Draco kissed her soundly on the mouth. It wasn't a sweet kiss, it was passionate and fast. Both of them poured all their fears and doubts in the bitter sweet embrace. Letting their hands roam each other's body freely. The broke away after what seemed like hours gasping for air.

"You're beatiful..." Draco said running his thumb over her tear streaked face.

She couldn't help but giggle at his words. At the moment she felt everything but pretty.

"Flattery won't work on me Draco..." She said trying to supress a small smile.

"It wasn't flattery" Draco mumbled pulling her into a tight hug.

* * *

"Ah Antonin...I've been expecting you." The Dark Lord said from his seat at the end of the table.

"My Lord?" Antonin asked bowing his head.

"How is your _delightful_ daughter Antonin?" The Dark Lord answered.

Dolohov couldn't help but furrow his brow at the question, it wasn't like the Dark Lord to ask after any one's children unless he had something planned out for them.

"Hum... She is well my lord..."

"Good...Good..." The dark lord said in a voice that said the exact opposite.

Antonin shuddered.

"Tell her she will have the great honor to further our cause."

Antonin's fears were confirmed. Despite what people might think he cared for his daughter and he feared the assignment the Dark Lord might burden her with.

"May I ask how my lord?"

Voldemort smiled evilly, his red eyes gleaming maniacally in the candlelight.

"The Russian Ministry of Magic is willing to give me his support in this war but he fears for his life..."

Antonin frowned, what did that have to do with Kat?

"If he were to die in the conflict he wishes to make sure that his family line will endure..."  
Antonin was starting to understand exactly what the Dark Lord meant.

"He need a beautiful, talented, pure blooded young witch to marry his son and produce an heir as fast as possible."

"My lord I thank you on my daughter's behalf for the compliment but Kat is betrothed to young Draco Malfoy...surely there are others."

"There are no others Antonin!" Voldemort snapped "The minister desires a girl of russian descent and you are the only one of my followers with such origins. Young Malfoy knows better than to contradict my plans.

"Of course my lord but Kateryna..."

"Kateryna will do as I say, she is bound to my service and should serve her master loyally. Anyways she has no reason to complain, the Istyazaniye family is extremely respected family in the Russian Wizarding world, much like the Malfoys USED to be."

At this comment from the Dark Lord, Antonin understood that he had to agree. If the Malfoys were falling out of favor again, it wouldn't be safe for Kat to be linked to their family in any way.

"Of course my lord."

With these words, it was done.

* * *

"Ron! Let go!" Astoria squeaked as her boyfriend openly laughed at her. "Ron that's not proper!"

The Redheaded boy was currently showering her face with kisses, not caring about the muggles walking by.

"Screw proper love! I really don't care what the muggles think right now!"

Ron said enthusiastically planting a huge kiss on her open mouth.

"Well I do!" Hissed Ginny "Guys we're here for a reason so could you please keep it down! We don't want to draw attention to ourselves!"

The four teens were currently standing in the middle of Camden town, waiting for Mundungus that was supposed to show up any second.

"Why do we need to see that slimy crook anyway?" Astoria asked after successfully pushing her boyfriend away.

"Information..." Ginny said in a hushed voice "Information that he won't be willing to give, that's why you're here..."

"Me?" Astoria asked her eyes widening

"Don't worry we have a plan..." Harry said with a smile.

* * *

"Draco what the hell!" Daphne whispered to her friend "How am I supposed to hear anything if you take my extendable ear!"

"Your girlfriend isn't the one sitting in that room probably freaking out at what her dad is about to tell her!"

Draco was not happy. Worse, he was freaking out. A behavior totally unbefitting of a Malfoy. But when he had seen Dolohov's face when he asked to speak to Kat, he knew something was very,very wrong. His suspicion were confirmed when a few seconds later he hear a resounding

"What?" come from the room on which they were all eavesdropping. Theo turned to Draco and mouthed "She is going to destroy him..." to which Draco chuckled. Ceph barely shook his head and tried to listen more closely to the conversation going on behind the closed door.

"No fucking way!" Kat was screaming. "First you sell me to the Malfoy like some milk cow on the market place, okay I could deal with that. Me and Draco actually like each other now, I can almost envision a future with him"

At these words Draco couldn't help but grin. His efforts were paying off! However his happiness was very short lived.

"And NOW! You want to sell me to a HIGHER bidder! Do you have any idea what you're asking?"

"Kateryna please..." Antonin answered in an even voice.

"No, don't you try to reason with me! I'm your daughter, not some pawn you can just move around. I will not marry this guy, no matter how ancient his line is. I. Don't. Give. A. Shit!"

"Young Lady watch your language. I doubt our future husband will want a wife that speaks in such a manner."

"I don't care what my future husband wants. He can 'Avada Kedavra' his own arse for all I care!"

Draco was furious. How dare Dolohov take Kat away from him, he was making progresses with her. She was starting to be happy! She told him she liked him for Merlin's sake! If it weren't for Blaises and Theo's firm grim on him he would have stormed in there right now and taken her away.

"Kateryna listen to me for a second I can explain..."

"Explain what? That these people have more money and power than the Malfoy so you'd rather sell me to them? I don't want to hear it!"

"Kateryna!" Dolohov really raised his voice now "These are the Dark Lord's orders and you WILL NOT disobey Him! You cannot afford to make one wrong step in your position, many still doubt your loyalty. You will marry Alexei whether you like it or not."

"I won't!"

"Do you want all of us to be killed? Foolish girl...Do you really think the dark lord will just find someone else. Do you want your brother to die? Draco? Your other friends? Me?"

Kat didn't answer she was sobbing now. When Dolohov spoke up again, his voice was softer.

"Kateryna, I know you didn't want to be a Death eater. I'm no fool, I no you did it to keep the persons you care about safe. Can't you do the same now?"

After that he only heard sobs. Desperate sobs.

"Kat..." Dolohov whispered

"ALRIGHT! Are you done ...g...guilt tripping me into this? Do you know what it means for me? I...I'll have to leave everything behind! I'll have to leave England and my friends. I'll have to leave school to marry some dude I've NEVER met! And the worst is that I know I don't have a choice...I know that I can kick and scream but it won't change anything. If I resist, Draco will be dead, Ceph will be dead, My friends will be dead...and I'll be married anyways."

Draco couldn't take it anymore. He tried to pull free of his friend's grasp but when Crabbe joined in to restrain him he didn't stand a chance anymore.

"Draco you should go..." Pansy whispered "You don't want to hear this..."

* * *

"LET ME GO BLAISE!"

"Will you run back to the living room if I do so?"

"Yes."  
"I'm sorry Draco but we can't let you do that..." Theo cut in.

"There's nothing to do about this Drake..." Blaise said while dragging him into his bedroom.

"Are you kidding? I can do so much...I can marry her tomorrow...I can run away with her...she can't leave me like that..."

"Draco you'll get killed, we'll get killed, she'll get killed. There's nothing to do...You'll find another girl sometime, just as nice,and pretty, and smart..."

"Theo!" Draco said, his desperation now clearly audible "I fucking love that girl. I've probably loved her for longer than I can remember! I loved her when she was bushy haired, know it all Granger. I did, you knew I did...I made her pay for it too. I was genuinely horrible to her because of what thought she was. I knew that I could never even think about acting on my feelings so I treated her as badly as I could" Draco took a deep breath looking around the room at his friend's pitying looks.

"And then she shows up, looking like she stepped out of my craziest fantasy...With the same explosive character as ever and a blood status I would be allowed to consider...They can't take her away from me...Not now...Not after fucking everything I went through to get her to actually like me!"

No one said anything as Draco started methodically tearing down every single painting on the wall. Causing a lot of shocked shrieks from their occupants.

"And you know what, I wouldn't be half as crazed if she choose to leave me. If she was going to be happy with someone else, I could live with that. I'd be furious for a while. I'd shout and threaten and plot but I'd get over it. But THIS. I'm a Malfoy for Merlin's sake, they can't take her away. They can't make her unhappy."

Draco clenched his jaw. His eye twitching slightly with rage.

"He won't take her away...I'll figure something out... I have to..."

The whole room was silent. No one had dared to speak during Draco's monologue and now they were all pondering his words.

"I don't think we have a choice Drake. She'll get hurt if she doesn't obey...You'll get hurt." Daphne whispered.

" Daphne please." Theo snapped "you know very well there will be no talking him out of this..."

The boys snickered, remembering the multiple times they had had to follow Potter and Weasley down the hallways of Hogwarts because Draco was convinced they could get them 'this time'.

"How can we help you?" Blaise said

"I don't know yet but I'll figure it out.I have to..." Draco said.

* * *

"What the fuck!?" Ron shouted as he ripped the Daily Prophet in Half. "Last time we saw her she was enjoying Honeymoon in paradise with ferret face and now she looks on the verge of suicide as they announce her betrothal to some Russian Voldie follower?"

Astoria pulled the ruined newspaper out of her boyfriend's hands. Examining the picture that graced its front cover. It was a portrait of Kateryna Dolohov, smiling weakly, all the light gone from her eyes. Her gaze kept on flickering away from the camera to something or someone to the side.

"She looks really scared..." Astoria whispered "I never thought I'd ever see her looking that terrified. She's always so level headed..."

"I know..." Ron said "She always figures it out and always knows what to do..."

"What is it?" Harry asked walking into the kitchen. His hair messier than usual and a disheveled Ginny on his heels.

Ron narrowed his eyes at his best friend but didn't say anything. Instead, he motioned to Astoria that handed him the paper. The change in Harry's expression was immediate. His features hardened.

"These bastards" he hissed "rubbing it in our faces too. I bet that's his plan, get her upset enough for us to barge in and try to save her..."

"Of course that's part of if" answered Astoria "but I think the marriage does have its advantages for the Dark Lord. That guy is the son of the ministry of magic in Russia." She said pointing at the picture of a cruelly handsome looking man represented next to Kat's picture "Alexei Istyazaniye. He's pretty influential and powerful. A useful allegiance If the Dark Lord wants to fully take control of Britain."

"He's pretty hot." Ginny said with a wink, hopelessly trying to lighten the mood. This only earned her two very annoyed looks and a giggle from Astoria.

"This is serious Gin." Ron said, his brows knitting "Kat won't have a choice. It will be marry or die, just like with Malfoy..."

Everybody turned towards Ron with wide eyes. The redhead had really grown up from the petty young man he used to be. Since he met Astoria, he had started understanding that everything is not black or white.

"What can we do?" Astoria asked "She most probably won't come with us, she knows that He will retaliate on her family if she does."

"That's true." Harry said with a nod towards Astoria "but we'll need to figure something out. Fast."

AN: HUGHHHHHHHH I promess I'll try to keep up guys but bear with me! I used to be pretty regular about updating but with everything going on its just harder. Once spring break starts it'll be better though :))


	12. Author's note (end of hiatus?)

**AN- HIIII I have been off of ffnet for about a two years, life kind of caught up with me and I feel like my writing has evolved a lot. Anyways I was thinking of updating this story if people are interested. If anyone wants me to continue I'll reread this and try to come up with more chapter- I never relly planned out how the story would end but if any one has suggestions just let me know. Review or message me or something so that I know if there's any interest in finishing this fic ALSO I would need a beta reader if anyone wants to take on that role**

**PLEASE guys review or message me so that I can ACTUALLY get a feel for how many people would want to keep on reading this and have me edit previous chapters, I don't want to be wasting my time on a story that no one will read**

**Thanks 3 -Fede **


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